


The Story of Sui

by sueo



Category: Final Fantasy VII
Genre: Father-Daughter Relationship, Gen, Other, Parent-Child Relationship, Rufus Shinra's daughter, Shinra Company
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-17
Updated: 2020-10-09
Packaged: 2021-03-01 18:33:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 34,126
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23701627
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sueo/pseuds/sueo
Summary: Set after the events of Advent Children, the story begins at Edge when Marlene and Denzel were walking home from school and met a child no older than them. The children became fast friends, but Cloud and Tifa have other concerns: the child reminds them so much of a particular villain donned in white formal suit.This was previously written in Indonesian at ff.net with the title "Chibi Shachou" with improvements (I hope).
Comments: 2
Kudos: 23





	1. That Sunny Afternoon

**Author's Note:**

  * A translation of [Chibi Shachou](https://archiveofourown.org/external_works/597253) by Sueo. 



It was a scorchingly hot day. Summer had just started in Edge, and kids dispersed out of Edge Central Public School building as soon as the school bell rang. It’s the end of the school day on a Thursday, and kids were rejoiced because the school would be closed tomorrow for a national holiday.

Denzel and Marlene were walking home from school as they were each enjoying a piece of ice lollies they bought from the convenient store located across the school building. As they made their way to Seventh Heaven, the ice lollies melted away and left tracks of bright-colored droplets on the uneven asphalt pavement. It’s been a while since the incident at the Meteor Square happened, and Shinra haven’t been fixing the roads around the school area lately for god knows why reasons, even though they’ve been stressing over and over that they’re now busy ‘rebuilding Midgar’ on the news. The two didn’t care however; they both have seen the world in a far worse state, and to be able to go to school and enjoy ice lollies is more than enough of luxury to care about how the road pavements were uneven.

The two were a only few blocks away from Seventh Heaven when they noticed two tall men standing at the end of the street; one was bald and bulky with a grumpy face covered with scars, and the other was rather skinny with tattoos covering his arms. The kids have been raised in a bar for a while now, and more than often they’ve seen people like them as Tifa’s patrons or old friends from AVALANCHE. However, there’s just something that seems unsettling about those two. Without a word, Denzel grasped Marlene’s hand and they walked faster, but the two men blocked their way and pushed them down to the pavement. Their half-eaten ice lollies fell to the ground, and they were more than ready to run away. However, the two thugs pulled them and lifted them off the ground. The two retaliated and tried to scream for help, but their mouths were quickly shut. Denzel tried to kick them away, but the scarred-face thug carrying him was far bigger and stronger than him. Marlene began to cry as she realized that they were carried away from their path home.

_No….please no! Cloud…Tifa…anyone! Please, help us!_

They knew it was a hopeless call of help; at this hour, Tifa is busy preparing the bar for the night, and Cloud is out somewhere doing deliveries. The two were currently in a shortcut located at the back of tall business-district buildings, and people barely went there. How could there be two thugs hanging out there that day, the kids have no idea. Marlene thought she was done for until she heard a THWACK sound, then followed by painful screams coming out of those two thugs. Soon enough, she felt that the grips of the skinny thug that held her loosened, and she was able to drop herself to the ground and escaped the arms of the thug. Denzel too was able to got away; the two stepped away from the thugs, whose heads were now bleeding quite badly and grunted profanity as they writhed on the ground. They noticed a few round-shaped metal balls on the ground, covered in blood. Denzel thought that whatever took those thugs down must’ve shot that ball out of some sort of weapon.

“…Cloud? Tifa? Is that you?” Marlene called out.

Denzel wasn’t sure; he remembered that none of them or anyone at AVALANCHE used any sort of weapon with bullets like these. The two children looked around, wondering whoever helped them until they heard footsteps from a darker alleyway. Denzel was immediately cautious and told Marlene to stay behind him, but then his guard quickly fell when the figure who appeared was nothing but a child who seemed not older than Marlene. The two then observed the child - he had short platinum blonde hair with sidebangs down on his cheek, but the back of his hair were kept short. He has a pair of bright blue eyes, and he was clad in an all-white Wutaian-style short-sleeved shirt, short dress pants above, and combat boots. Both of them have never seen him before; kids around the area knew pretty much everyone since before the Meteor Square incident, and there was only one school in the area. Perhaps he just moved in nearby recently?

When Denzel noticed that the child was holding a slingshot gun on his right hand, he knew immediately that it was him who saved them. Denzel was about to speak, but the two grunts got back up on their feet again and dashed towards the child. He immediately threw the gun towards the bald grunt’s face, and punched the guy right in his gut soon after. The bald guy was down on the ground once more. “Watch out!” Marlene yelled, seeing that the other guy was about to grab the child into his arms. The child then jumped up high and did a somersault in the air, grabbing one of the thug’s arms with both of his hands. Not only that he twisted the guy’s arm, he also managed to throw the guy in the air and slammed him back on the ground. The two thugs seemed to be out cold for good this time, so the child got up and wiped off dusts from his all-white clothes as he picked up his gun again.

“Are you two all right?” the child asked. Marlene was stunned; the child’s voice was surprisingly soft and gentle-toned for a boy, and yet also clear.

“Yes…we’re okay now. Thank you so much for your help!” Denzel said.

The child then nodded, and without saying anything he turned around to the opposite direction. He was about to walk away until Marlene grasped one of his hands and held him back. “Wait!” she cried, “You’re bleeding.”

The child then took another glance at his arm, and Marlene was right - he was bruised quite badly and the wound was covered with dirt, blood dripping to the end of his fingers. Marlene also pointed to his face - there were more wounds and scratches on his nose and forehead.

“It’s all right, they’re only scratches. These will get better in no time.” he said.

He was about to walk away again, but Marlene held him back. “Our house isn’t too far from here; how about if you come with us and get your wounds treated? You might get an infection if you wait a little bit longer!” she offered.

“Um….”

“And don’t tell me that you can handle it like a big boy!” Marlene insisted, “Tifa says be it boys or girls, infection doesn’t wait! Any kind of wound must be treated immediately!”

The child looked unsure for a little while, but after looking left and right, he nodded. He then pressed a button that folded his gun into a small stick, and then he latched it away onto one of the belt slots on his pants. “Alright...I’ll come with you for a bit.”

Marlene smiled, and then she took his hand gently and the three walked to Seventh Heaven together.

“Anyway, I’m Denzel, and she’s Marlene.” Denzel said, “What’s your name?”

The child went quiet for a while, before he hesitantly answered “…Ruvio.”

“Ruvio? That’s a very nice name!” Marlene said. “I like your name, Ruvio! You’re also very handsome, just like a prince in fairy tales - right, Denzel?”

Denzel just nodded, while Ruvio looked unsure; he opened his mouth to say something, but he decided not to and went along with the two as they continued walking into Edge’s shopping district.

—-

“Tifa! We’re home!” Marlene cried as she opened Seventh Heaven’s door. Tifa was standing behind the bar, washing a few glasses in the sink. “Welcome home, you two! How was scho-“

Tifa went speechless as she saw a blonde-haired child stepped into the bar along with the two children. “Who is he? Your new friend from school?” she asked, her gaze never left the child.

“Oh, his name is Ruvio. We met him on the way home.” Denzel explained.

The child then stepped forward and bowed, “Pleased to meet you, ma’am.” he greeted. This child has good manners, Tifa thought. This kind of greeting is used amongst upper society of Wutai amongst children to respect their elders - Yuffie told me once about this. She also noticed the Wutaian-style shirt he’s wearing, which doesn’t look cheap at all, even though it was already covered with a little bit of dirt and blood. However, when she looked into the child’s blue eyes, she couldn’t let her gaze off. Tifa could tell that this kid would grow up to be a very handsome man, however, his eye just had this familiar glow that somehow made her felt like she was sucked into an inescapable vortex…

_…Have I met him somewhere before?_

“TIFA!” Denzel yelled, breaking her out of her trance.

“Y-yes, Denzel?”

“Can you help treat Ruvio’s wounds? He got wounded when he tried to help us earlier.”

“Help you guys with what?” Tifa asked.

“There were two thugs trying to kidnap us on our way home here!” Marlene explained, “We were walking down the usual path home, and we’ve never encountered thugs before! We thought we were going to be taken away, until Ruvio knocked those guys down!”

Tifa found it hard to believe that a little boy like Ruvio managed to beat down two thugs alone, until Denzel urged Ruvio to show him his weapon. Ruvio then unlatched the stick from his belt slots, and pressed the button that turned the stick back into the slingshot gun. Tifa observed the gun for a bit, and frowned upon realizing that the gun have the clear marking of Shinra company logo. _What the…Shinra now makes dangerous toys like these for kids?_

“Ruvio, you shouldn’t carry around something like this, you know? You could seriously harm someone!“ she said

“…But my father told me to bring this to protect myself,” Ruvio said, “He also taught me not to use it unless I really need to. If I use it just to harm someone without reason, I will be punished.”

Tifa just silenced as she returned the weapon to Ruvio, and after he put them away, she began to treat his wounds. She was conflicted on what to say next; if Ruvio didn’t bring any weapons, no one would help Denzel and Marlene escape the thugs who attacked them. Besides, the child didn’t seem to have any intentions to harm anyone on purpose; he didn’t even flinch as Tifa tended his wounds.

“Does it hurt, Ruvio?” Marlene asked.

Ruvio nodded. “It’s okay though, it doesn’t bother me much” he said.

Tifa was surprised - even Cloud still flinched when she applied this particular wound cleaning solution on him.

_…I heard that no one has ever seen him bleed or cry…_

Tifa quickly brushed the thought off her mind. _It couldn’t be,_ she thought. _It’s just impossible._

“Alright, we’re done!” Tifa said, securing the roll of bandage on Ruvio’s arm.

“Thank you, ma’am.” Ruvio said.

Tifa smiled, “Just call me Tifa.”

“A-alright, if you insist…ma-, uh, I mean…Tifa” Seeing Ruvio blushing so adorably, Tifa couldn’t help but ran her palm through his blonde hair - which was surprisingly very soft. Ruvio was about to say something when they heard the rumbling sound of a motorcycle engine from outside.

“Cloud!” Denzel and Marlene cried, and they ran out to the door.

“Who is Cloud?” Ruvio asked.

Tifa smiled. “I’ll introduce you, come on!”

When they went outside, Cloud was just finished parking his motorcycle. He was talking to both Denzel and Marlene until Tifa brought Ruvio to them. Upon noticing the blonde haired child, Cloud’s eyes went wide. He quickly pushed Denzel and Marlene away, and held Ruvio’s head with both of his palms as he brought his face close to him. _This child…he can’t be!_

“Cloud? What are you doing to Ruvio?” Denzel asked.

Cloud turned to the two kids. “Ruvio?”

“That’s his name.” Tifa said. “Denzel and Marlene met him on their way home from school.”

Cloud then released his grasp from the child’s head. Ruvio remained calm, and bowed his head as he greeted Cloud. “Pleased to meet you, Sir Cloud.”

“Uh, just ‘Cloud’ is fine...Ruvio.”

While Cloud was impressed with the child’s politeness, the uneasy feeling still wouldn’t go away and he couldn’t stop looking at the child so intensely that the kids began to realize that something's not right. Tifa knew immediately what to do; she told the kids to go play in the park for a while, while she and Cloud went to talk inside the bar.

“Alright, Cloud…what is it you want to talk about?” Tifa asked, leaning towards the bar table.

“That child…he’s no ordinary child.”

“I know, Cloud. I could feel it.”

“Tifa… who do you think he reminds you of?” Tifa gulped.

“Rufus…Shinra…”

“Correct.” Cloud sighed. “Not surprised if it’s even Rufus himself”.

“Don't be ridiculous, Cloud! Ruvio is just a little child, and Rufus Shinra is a full grown man! He couldn’t possibly revert himself into a child-“

“Tifa, we’re talking about Shinra technology here. It could’ve been unintentional; perhaps an accident that reverted himself into a child? Or he could be using it to hide himself because a lot of people still wanted him dead for sure.”

“Don’t be ridiculous, Cloud! What made you so sure that he is Rufus Shinra himself? It could be his child or-”

“The eyes of that little boy; I remembered the color of Rufus’ eyes very well ever since I battled him at Shinra Tower rooftop - he also had a small tint of mako traces. I don’t know what he went through as a child, or perhaps it was his mother who went through the treatment. This boy, however... his eyes have deeper Mako energy infusion trace; almost similar to mine. So if the boy wasn’t Rufus, it could have been his clone. I don’t think that man haven’t got any candidates for a wife as of recently, not even any recent girlfriends or mistresses. However, it wouldn’t be surprising if he’s enquiring clones or recruit surrogates to produce an heir for his company.”

“Could it be that...the thugs who attacked Denzel and Marlene earlier were actually targeting him?”

Cloud and Tifa both grew concerned at the idea of Denzel and Marlene hanging out with someone that may attract danger, so they dashed out to the park to look for the children. Once they arrived, there were many children and their chaperones out there in the park, but the three were nowhere to be seen. Tifa started to panic, but Cloud calmed her down and suggested that they look at the church first.

Cloud was right. The kids were at the church. The three of them were playing amongst the field of flowers that grew by the pool of holy water, not realizing that Cloud and Tifa were standing by the entrance of the church, watching the kids being so happy together. A few months after the pool of holy water was formed, flowers grew back and the church became a place where kids are welcomed to play, but also at certain times become a place to pray or seek cure for unhealed diseases - mostly the Geostigma.  
They almost forgot whatever theory they have for the blonde little child; he just looked so happy and innocent.  
“I guess they’re alright, huh?” Cloud asked, turning to Tifa who was smiling at the kids. She nodded, and then the two decided to go back to the bar to continue the preparations to open the shop for tonight - it’s a long weekend, and they’re anticipating for plenty of customers.

—-

Meanwhile, back at the business district, two men in black suits were dashing around the block frantically.

“Rude, are you sure that brat is even here? The office is pretty far from this road, you know? We’re almost reaching the shopping district at this rate!”

“Well, Elena and Tseng just reported that the kid is nowhere to be seen throughout the entire business district. The shopping district is our best chance. Besides, we can ask the folks at Seventh Heaven for help.”

“You sure Strife and his folks would be willing help us?”

“They’re the ones who are familiar with the area around this part. Besides, maybe those orphans at Strife’s place know something - kids just attract other kids, you know?”

“But the brat we’re looking for is no ordinary kid! Would the orphans be able to mingle around that kid, though-“

“Reno, you do realize that not only our salary, our heads will be cut off if we can’t find that kid! So I suggest that you shut your mouth and we’d better hurry to Strife’s place. The sun is almost down, and we need to return to base as soon as possible with the kid!”

“Right. Let’s go!” And then, the two Turks made their way to Edge’s shopping district immediately.

—-

“Ruvio, this is for you!” Marlene said, placing a wreath of flowers on top of his blonde hair. Marlene was also wearing the same thing, and then she took Ruvio to the pond of holy water to see how they look.

Upon looking at his own reflection, Ruvio blushed. “Do I look weird wearing this?” he asked.

Both Marlene and Denzel shook their heads. “You look so pretty with that, Ruvio!" Marlene gushed, "Had you been a girl, you’d be a pretty princess!”

Ruvio blushed even harder, and shyly thanked Marlene.  
  
“Um…Marlene, can you teach me how to make this? I’d like to make one for someone.”

“Oh? For who?”

A smile creased on Ruvio’s lips. “It’s a secret!”

—-

As the day came to an end, the warm sunset colors seeped into the church ruins. It was beautiful, but Denzel also saw it as a sign that it was time to leave. When he saw that Ruvio was done making his flower wreath, Denzel then approached the two.

“We should head home before it’s dark,” he said. “Let’s leave now.”

The two agreed, and then they left the church together.

As they headed back towards Seventh Heaven, the shopping district were glowing from the streetlights and the bright store displays; the streets were also getting bustled by people - it’s a long weekend night; people are getting out to dine and shop.

“It’s beautiful…” Ruvio said, “I’ve never seen this kind of crowd before.”

“Really?” Marlene said unbelievingly, “Where did you live before you come here?”

“They said I was born in Midgar, but I only remembered Wutai for as long as I can remember; I lived there with my mother and her family.” he said. “When I was younger, I spent most of my time staying indoors because I was sick all the time. They never took me out to crowded places because I was too weak. When my father took me away from Wutai, he placed me into a very good hospital for treatment and I was cured within a month. I never imagined that I'll be able to walk amongst the crowd of people like this...”

“Oh, you’ll like it here then!” Denzel said excitedly. “The streets are crowded every night, and you can see so many people coming from all over the place! It’s really fun to observe them and wonder what kind of lives they have, you know?”

“Wow, that sounds amazing! I really hope I can come here again!”

“Speaking of which, Ruvio…shouldn’t you be heading home too?” Marlene asked.

Ruvio froze.

“Yeah! It’s getting pretty dark already - your mom and dad are probably worried.” Denzel added, “Where do you live anyway?”

 _Oh no…_ Ruvio thought. “I…live in Healen Lodge.”

Denzel and Marlene gasped. “Healen Lodge? That’s really far from here!” Denzel cried. “You’d probably need Cloud to take you home on his motorcycle - the roads out of town could be pretty dangerous at night!”

“Hold on, how did you end up in the city today? Did you come with someone?” Marlene asked.

“I-“

“THERE YOU ARE!”

Before Ruvio managed to speak, Rude and Reno were seen running towards the kids from the opposite direction.

 _“Chibi-shachou!”_ Reno cried, gasping for air as he approached them “Where have you been all day? We were looking all over for you!”

“Why did you leave your cellphone inside the car? We couldn’t locate you all day!” Rude scolded.

“It was hot today, so I leave my coat there when I went out of the car for a walk." Ruvio said, "I forgot that I left my phone inside my coat pocket. I’m sorry.” 

“...Nevermind the coat; you got your clothes dirty, and you're wounded too!” Reno whined as he hopelessly tried to wipe off the dust and blood from Ruvio’s shirt. But the stains were seeping in to the fabric already - not to mention that they just came back from playing among dirt on the church’s flower patch. “Oh man...we’re really done for!” he sighed.

Seeing Rude and Reno sighing defeatedly and mumbling about ‘salary cut’ over and over, Ruvio frowned. “I’m really sorry…” he mumbled, “…I know I shouldn’t get out of the car, I didn't mean to wander around this far for too long…”

Reno couldn’t bare to look at the little child’s sad face. After another sigh, he placed his palm onto Ruvio’s head and gently ran his fingers through his platinum blonde locks.

“Hey, it’s okay! I know that you’re bored waiting in the car - you’re just out looking for a friend to play with, right?”

Ruvio nodded. 

Their conversation were cut as the door to Seventh Heaven flung open - Tifa and Cloud were standing right in front of the door.

“Oh…it’s you guys.” Cloud said. “We were about to head to the church to pick up the kids.” he said.

Rude immediately turned away, trying to hide his awkward gaze from the two (even though Tifa couldn’t possibly look at his gaze because of his dark sunglasses).

“Well, I guess we were right about one thing - this boy is under Shinra’s care, huh?” Cloud said.

Reno tilted his head. “Huh? You mean c _hibi-shachou?”_

Cloud chuckled. “See, they even gave him a very fitting nickname. Just like his senior form.”

“Uh, guys...I think you’re all mistaken-“

Reno’s words were cut short by another voice approaching from behind. “I was wondering where my kid and two of my loyal Turks went to all day - turns out they’re all here, playing with the children of Seventh Heaven.”

 _“S-shachou!”_ Rude and Reno cried, both immediately turned stiff as their boss, Rufus Shinra himself, came walking towards them with Elena and Tseng in tow.

Cloud and Tifa were both surprised - last time Cloud and him were face to face, he was sitting on a wheelchair with the upper part of his body draped in a white blanket. This time he was no longer Geostigma-ridden anymore, standing rather firm on the ground - just like that time when he confronted them on the rooftop.

Without a word, Ruvio ran towards Rufus and grasped him by the waist, tiptoeing for a hug. “Looks like you’ve had quite an adventure today, huh?” he said, observing the child, and soon noticed the bandage. “Oh? You got wounded there; were you using your slingshot gun to pull a prank on someone?” 

Denzel and Marlene remembered how Ruvio mentioned earlier that he will be reprimanded if he was found to misuse his weapon, and the two immediately yelled “NO!” in unison. The kids then stepped closer towards Rufus to explain what happened during their trip back from school, and how they met Ruvio and took him here. The adults were stunned on how those two orphans who were usually quite timid around strangers were now proactively speaking to an adult they barely knew in order to defend their new friend, not to mention that Marlene is well aware that the man in front of her was his father’s enemy.

While Ruvio choose to hide behind Rufus’ coat, the older _shachou_ was smiling proudly upon hearing the children’s story about his kid's brave act. He only meant the initial question just to tease, but apparently the kids took it quite seriously. 

When they were done, Rufus assured them that Ruvio will not be punished. “Instead, the punishment will go to Reno and Rude for their incompetence in guarding Sui.”

“Understood, _shachou…”_ the two Turks groaned, but they couldn’t do anything since they were at fault anyway.

“Sui?” Tifa wondered, still unsure about the sight of both a big and a tiny Rufus Shinra in front of her. “Is that his nickname?”

“No, why?”

“He’s been saying that his name is Ruvio!” Marlene said.

The little child hid himself even deeper into Rufus’s coat, while Rufus finally noticed what’s going on and was quite amused about it; “Oh, I’m terribly sorry for the inconvenience,” Rufus chuckled, “Sui didn’t mean to lie. I was the one who told…this child to be very careful when it comes to personal identity. It’s necessary not to reveal oneself’s identity as a Shinra so recklessly when you’re in an unsafe position in public. Besides, Sui didn’t lie; folks in the company used to call me ‘Ruffio’ when I was much younger, and they think it’s cute to pass on the nickname; kid looks a lot like me, they all thought that I was cloned or shrunk back to childhood the first time I took Sui into my office!”

Cloud had to held back his laughter as hard as possible. "See, I wasn’t the only one who thought that way!" while Tifa glared at him. “So….he’s human?”

“Yes, Strife. One hundred percent biological. However-“

“Wait - you still managed to spare some time to sleep with someone between all that ambition to overthrow your dad and take over the world with fear?”

Tifa couldn’t stand it anymore and whacked his head. _Worth the question, tho._ Cloud thought.

Rufus sighed. “We can talk about my relationship with Sui’s mother another time to satisfy your curiosity, Strife. I-“

“Daddy,” Sui mumbled, tugging at the edge of Rufus’ pants. Tifa noticed how the child’s tone changed drastically around his father; sounding more like a child than what she have seen all day. Rufus knelt in front of his child and let him latch on his neck as he buried his face to his shoulder.

“I’ll tell you everything you want to know, but not now, please.”

Cloud quieted. If Rufus Shinra managed to look at him eye to eye as he begged, then this means it’s serious business. Never in his lifetime Cloud would thought that he would feel _guilty_ to a Rufus Shinra.

“Daddy?”

Sui latched away from Rufus, and then tiptoed to place a wreath of flowers that he’s been holding on his hand onto his father’s head.

“I made this for you. Marlene taught me how to do it”.

Rufus didn’t know how to react at first - is the first time that Sui gave him anything, and prior to that he doesn't have any experience on receiving gifts from children before.

At least, he remembered what not to do when your own flesh and blood is giving you a present.

“I think it’s beautiful. Thank you, Sui.” Rufus smiled, gently planting a kiss on the child’s cheek. “You also look beautiful with your own crown of flowers, like the princess you truly are. Perhaps we should get you a dress with flowers prints on it to match the crown?”

This time, Cloud couldn’t hold back to comment anymore. “Are you...out of your mind? You’re buying a dress for your son?”

“Says the hero who was once dressed in a drag for Don Corneo,” Rufus replied.

Cloud fumed at that, wondering how the hell did _that_ went into Shinra’s intel. But anything coming out of his mouth would come out wrong right now - especially when both Denzel and Marlene were both already bombarding Tifa with questions regarding on what Rufus just said.

Meanwhile, Rufus stood up and gently placed his hands on Sui’s shoulders, turning the child towards them. “Well, fatherhood is a new thing for me and I still learn something new every day. And if there’s one significant thing I learned today, I will need to get my daughter more feminine dresses. Most of her clothes, including the one she’s wearing right now, were mine when I was much younger.”

Cloud and Tifa's jaw dropped. Denzel, on the other hand, just sighed - he had a hunch about it before, it seems. 

“Wait, Ruvi- I mean, Sui is a girl?” Marlene cried.

“That’s right, Miss Wallace.” Rufus said, “I hope you guys won’t mind that.”

“Why didn’t you just tell us honestly, though?" Denzel asked.

Rufus looked at Sui, but she gave that look in her eye that says _“Please tell them, daddy”,_ in which Rufus obliged. “So like said before, she was supposed to hide her identity in case she was in a vulnerable position; in this case, she was separated from the Turks. In the previous incident where she ran away from the Turks before to visit the Chocobo Farm, everyone there also assumed that she’s a boy even though she wasn’t saying anything about it, so she just decided to go along with it. Had she knew that you were personal associates of mine, she wouldn't hide her identity.” Rufus explained, “Isn’t that right, Sui?”

Sui nodded. And then, she asked Rufus for another hug, in which he obliged. 

Meanwhile, the rest of then were still trying to comprehend that Sui is not a clone, nor a shrunken Rufus, and apparently…a heiress - an idea that was quite hard to believe. Cloud once believed that the Shinra family would only produce boys, as President Shinra’s known children are all male; and who would have thought that someone like Rufus would be willing to step in and take responsibility of his own bastard?

A few minutes later, a black-colored luxury sedan with Shinra logo on its license plates arrived. It’s time for Rufus and Sui to head home, back to Healen Lodge. Luxury cars like such were rare in the city these days, so they quickly caught some attention from the crowd; some people have also noticed Rufus Shinra’ presence, and he knows better not to extend his visit right now. 

“Alright, bye-bye, Sui!” Marlene said.

“I hope to see you again! It was fun playing with you!” Denzel added.

“Okay! We’ll go play together again!” Sui said. “May I, daddy?”

“That is, if Strife and Miss Lockhart is okay with it.”

The children then turned at the two with hopeful eyes. “Uh...it’s okay, I guess.” Cloud said. The children cheered.

But I hope you don’t run off on your own next time.” Tifa added, “If your father gives you permission, then it’s okay.”

“Don’t worry, next time I’ll make sure that Reno and Rude will stick with her, and she will keep her phone at all times.”

Rude coughed nervously. Of course, he’s more than willing to go on an assignment that means he’ll be sticking around near Tifa Lockhart, but he’s not sure whether his heart would be able to take it. So then, off they climbed into the car and waved goodbyes, before the car drove off to Healen Lodge.

Throughout the trip back, Sui wouldn’t stop blabbing about what she did all day as Rufus listened attentively and enquired her with questions. Elena, who was sitting right across them, was more than elated to see the two bonding more than ever.

She remembered the first time she actually saw her boss being nervous; it was when he decided to take this quiet and sickly child back from Wutai, and when he finally introduced himself as Sui’s father; he opened up to her how he wasn’t sure on how to become one, remembering how terrible his relationship with his late father back then. Almost everyone he consulted thought that it was a bad idea for him to take care of his own daughter. And yet, Elena was the only one who believed that he can. “Women’s intuition,” she said.

Back then, they said that Elena was out of her mind.

However, looking at how the boss and Sui are right now, they have to admit that they're losing the bet. 

That night, Rufus let Sui climb onto his bed and the two watched some late-night action movie on TV, along with Dark Nation curling around on their feet. The two stayed up until Sui fell asleep, and then Rufus decided to call it a night as well; he then turned off the TV, pulled up the sheets, kissed his little girl’s forehead and wished her sweet dreams as he closed his eyes and embraced her in his arms.

 _I promise that I’ll be a better father than mine,_ was the last thing in his mind before he drifted off to sleep...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, it's been a long time since I wrote fanfictions. The original Indonesian one-shot was written around ten years ago (per April 2020), and I think I've improved quite a lot since then. However, the story lingered to me once more when FF7R was nearing release, and I decided to try writing a fanfiction again after so many years. While I do feel that my writing skills are getting rusty, I find it particularly difficult writing in English while avoiding mentioning pronounces because it was intentional that Sui was thought as a boy by everyone in the beginning. I hope you guys enjoy it, and I hope that I'll be able to find time to translate my other Indonesian FF7 fanfics to English.


	2. A Day in the Life of Sui

Sui starts her day at eight o’clock in the morning. A maid would wake her up from her bed and a doctor on duty would check on her condition. After the doctor declared that she’s good to go, she would gussy up and head for breakfast at the lounge.

A glass of warm cocoa would wait for her on the table, and then a maid would ask her what she wanted for breakfast - bacon and eggs, toast, cereal, pancakes, or bread and jam?

She then chooses a menu; bacon and eggs this morning, and then she drinks her cocoa as she watched the birds through the large glass windows at the lounge.

During around this time, Rufus would join her; sometimes he’s already there, reading some news on his tablet as he enjoyed his morning drink - either coffee or a blend of Wutaian tea. Although his doctors were still reluctant on him drinking coffee, they knew how Rufus would be more grumpy than usual if they won’t let him have his morning coffee, and his poor employees (including them) would have to deal with his cranky mood the whole day. So when Rufus began to show much better progress, they relented to letting him have no more than one cup per day, with no sugar added. No problem - he liked it better with no sugar anyway.

Until Sui came into his life.

On her early days living in Healen Lodge,Rufus never bothered to interact with her unless necessary - he trusted the babysitting task to the maids and nannies, until he caught Rude and Reno having a tea party in her bedroom, sitting amongst her plush toys. Rufus wondered why his loyal Turks spend their free time with his daughter - did Sui nagged them to play? Elena then explained that Rude and Reno did it voluntarily - sometimes she and Tseng would do too. 

“Why?” Rufus asked.

“It’s just a normal thing to do when you’re around children. She looked lonely, and we thought that playing with children is a nice way to unwind from our missions.” Elena explained; most kids in Edge would rather avoid them anyway, even though they never did anything particularly bad to them. Shinra’s Turks still have a certain reputation in the city; especially amongst those who lived under the plate back then.

“You should try joining her tea party for once, _shachou._ ” Elena suggested.

So then, on one particular afternoon where he had no meetings or errands to do, he went into Sui’s room to join one of her tea parties.

Much to his surprise, the tea party wasn’t what he thought to be - even though the other guests were her plush toys, Sui followed a proper Wutaian tea ceremony with a traditional tea set; her mother taught her many Wutaian traditions that they can practice at home, and the tea set she used was once belonged to her grandparents. Rufus ended up asking many questions about certain traditions or gestures, and he have to admit that the tea she brewed tastes very good.

So then, he made it a routine to have a cup of Wutaian tea regularly for breakfast when he have to reduce his caffeine intake.

\---

After breakfast, Rufus would dismiss himself into his office to start working, accompanied by Tseng and Elena to brief him his tasks for the day. While Sui would be escorted by a maid to go to her room, where she will have a morning shower and after she dressed properly, she would go to the study room for private tutoring sessions. Unlike the previous days where she is provided with a shirt and dress shorts from her father’s childhood, this morning she received a white sleeveless dress, a pair of white ankle-length lace socks, and a matching pair of white Mary Jane shoes. She put them on, and then she looked at her reflection once more before she went out of her bedroom.

The study is adjacent to the office, where the room is separated by a glass door; Rufus would often look up from his desk to take a glance into the study, and then he would smile upon finding out that nothing is out of the ordinary before he returned to his work. Sometimes in the middle of her lessons, one of the Turks would call Sui into Rufus’ office to greet one of her father’s guests.

Today, it was Reeve Tuesti who visited them. He was sitting on a chair right across Rufus’s desk.

“Good day to you, Uncle Reeve.” Sui greeted, giving a curtsy to his father’s guest.

Seeing that his father smiled, Sui felt proud - she did it right! Her tutor just taught her that some mannerisms are more proper to Midgar society when wearing a dress; while her Wutaian greeting is fine, a curtsy would “compliment her dress”, they said.

Meanwhile, Reeve was quite stunned - yes, he have met Sui a few times previously; once when she was still bedridden in one of the emergency suites in another cottage, and the second was a few weeks later when she was already much healthier and able to stand and speak. He wasn’t quite sure back then whether Sui was a boy or a girl because she was dressed in hospital-issued pajamas on the two occasions where they meet, but now that she’s dressed in a girly outfit, it’s pretty clear that she’s definitely a girl, and a beautiful one while being a splitting image of her father at the same time. 

“What do you think, Reeve?” Rufus asked, “I asked Elena to purchase some feminine clothes for her yesterday.”

“It’s....beautiful!” Reeve said, amazed. “Come here, Sui!”

Sui then approached Reeve, and she wrapped him in a hug. As Sui cheerfully talked with Reeve, Rufus felt a pang of jealousy; Reeve is more natural with children. Perhaps because he came from a more humble background, and he would often be involved with charitable causes ever since he was working under the previous President Shinra - of course Sui will grow attached to him faster.

Rufus never thought about fatherhood, not that he have ever found any woman that makes him want to have children; he definitely didn’t imagine that he’ll be a father first before finding a wife, and yet…here they are. 

“Oh, I almost forgot; I have something special for you today!” Reeve said, taking out a something out of his bag - a familiar, cactus-shaped creature toy about the size of a puppy.

“Is that a cactuar?” Rufus asked, unsure what Reeve is giving to his daughter.

Reeve then pushed a button located at the back of the cactuar toy, and the thing began to stretch and yawn like a person who just woke up from a long nap. Reeve then placed the toy on the floor, where the tiny cactuar began to chase Sui and playfully pounced on her. Dark Nation perked up, got up from his pillow, and began to try pouncing on the toy as well. The cactuar jumped away, and then the three began to chase each other around the office.

“Perhaps we should think of setting up a toy sales department in the company. Kids always love your creations.”

Reeve chuckled, “It’s just my hobby, sir. I don’t want this to become a job.”

“Heh, you’re doing a better job at making her smile than me.”

Reeve thought that it’s just Rufus being sarcastic again, but the president looked quite glum. Sighing, Reeve leaned forward and placed his hands on the desk. “I don’t think you should be so hard on yourself, sir. You’re doing a great job for someone who never dealt with kids his whole life. I’m sure that you’ll only get better as you spend more time with her.”

“Well, I can only hope so - with everything that’s been happening around the family she’s so unfortunate to be born with, I really hope that she won’t hate me one day.”

“And even if she did, it’s only normal; kids in normal families resent their parents from time once puberty hits.”

Rufus sighed even deeper. “…I don’t even want to imagine that yet. All I remembered was that I was a complete hell-raiser when I was a teen, and knowing that she’s my flesh and blood, I know that she can be a nightmare, especially when she learned all the dark secrets about her family name.”

“Well, let’s hope that things won't go that bad...”

Sui and Dark Nation kept on playing around with the jumping cactuar toy until Tseng reminded them that it’s time for Sui to return to her study session. She obeyed and captured the toy, and asked Reeve to teach her how to turn it off. Afterwards, she politely thanked Reeve, passed the toy to Tseng for safekeeping, and returned to the study.

“…Well, I can see why you really don’t want her to hate you. She’s such a good girl.”

The two adults then returned to work-related discussions, and Sui diligently studied with her tutor until lunchtime.

\---

After her study sessions ended for the day, it’s time for Sui’s exercise. Previously, she’s only allowed to go around the Healen Lodge compound; now that she’s much healthier and have found new friends, she's now ready to spend the rest of the afternoon with Denzel and Marlene. Reno will be the one driving her to Edge's shopping district. 

Rufus remembered how the girl used to be so weak, and would be pushed in a wheelchair as she lifelessly watched the natural scenery around the health resort compound. Now that she’s starting to get playmates in the city, he choose not to follow his father’s ways; back then, Rufus almost had nobody to play with, as his father was very selective on who he befriended with; he had lost many friends along the way just because his father didn’t like their parents, or the parents didn’t like Shinra.

He didn’t want Sui to experience all the things he resented. He wished for her to grow without Shinra’s influences as much as possible.

And yet, there’s this pain whenever he sees her go away without him.

“To love is to learn to let go, _shachou._ ” that’s what Elena said.

And so, he learned to let go.

\---

Today, Denzel and Marlene were happy to see Sui once more; they were surprised to see Sui dressed differently today. Marlene was so excited to see Sui "looking like a pretty princess" that other kids in the park began to pay attention, and so they came and asked the two who this new girl might be. Sui turned to Reno, who was sitting at a nearby bench for reassurance, and he just said, “It’s okay, Sui _-chan_.” - which means it’s a signal that it’s okay to introduce herself as she is, without any mentions of her family name. Tseng has briefed her earlier that her family name is something that she should keep to herself when she’s not with her father, especially when she’s going somewhere around Denzel and Marlene’s living area - hence why Reno is dressed in civilian clothing today, not his usual Turks uniform.  
  
She doesn’t understand why, but she knew that she have to obey so that she wouldn’t cause trouble for Daddy and the others.

After Sui introduced herself, one of the kids asked what did she bring in her hand - the cactuar toy that she got from Reeve earlier. Sui briefly explained it to them and proceeded to turned it on, and soon all the kids at the park were happily playing a game of tag with the cactuar toy.

Reno took the initiative of recording a video of the kids playing on his phone and send it to Rufus immediately - Reeve and the boss would definitely like to see this.

Right after he sends the message, Tifa approached him and offered a can of cherry-flavored soda.

“Thanks,” Reno said, taking the offer. He put his phone away and popped open the soda, while Tifa sat next to him, drinking the same brand of soda but in a different flavor.

“You’re alone on babysitting duty today? Where are the others?”

“They’re helping out _shachou_ with some errands today,” Reno said, “Besides, _shachou_ didn’t want her to draw unnecessary attention when she’s in your turf after what happened last time. We’ve also told her to avoid speaking anything about her family to her new friends.”

“I’d say that’s a smart move,” Tifa remarked, “I don’t think she would like to know that people still mentioned her father as _Doofus_ Shinra around these parts.”

Reno chuckled, “Yeah, if _shachou_ could raise her without Shinra’s influence at all, he would totally do it.”

“I understand that she lived in Wutai before, right?”

Reno nodded. “Uh-huh, as far as I know.”

“Why did Shinra decided to bring her here? If your boss really wanted to raise her without Shinra’s influence at all, why even bother letting her know that he’s her father? He could’ve just-“

“Send money to her mother every now and then, never appear personally in her life? That’s what his father did to all his bastards.”

It wasn’t a surprising fact, but hearing it in a rather matter-o-factly manner from a Shinra employee still made Tifa gasped.

 _“Shachou_ had always wanted to be a different man from his father from the start, yo. Once he discovered _chibi-shachou_ ’s existence, he refused not to be involved. Besides, she didn’t have anyone else - _chibi-shachou_ ’s entire family in Wutai have died from the stigma. She wasn’t born a healthy child to begin with, and she was already on the last stages of the disease when we discovered her, so we immediately took her all the way here to cure her. Healen Lodge has all the best medical resources on the Planet, and _shachou_ spent a lot of money on getting a wheelchair-bound child to be able to run around like today.”

Tifa silenced. She didn’t know what to say anymore.

“Look, it’s not my place to criticize _shachou_ on his actions, but…I think his decision on taking in _chibi-shachou_ was part of his redemption.” Reno said, “Also…he thought that he was really going to die alone on this planet, yo. Turks might be the closest thing he has for a family, but as a human being…I think it’s just normal to be longing for someone who shared the same blood with you when you’ve literally brushed your face with death.”

“I can understand that,” Tifa said, her hands moving towards her stomach. Perhaps it was an unconscious reflex, but Reno knew exactly what she meant - having read her complete dossier before, he knew that the scar left by Sephiroth’s Masamune made it very difficult for her to have children. He wasn’t proud to know that - ashamed, even. Hence why he just looked away and pretended not to know anything.

“A-anyway! If you want to know more about _chibi-shachou,_ you’re welcome to visit _shachou_ anytime,” Reno said. “I’m sure Denzel and Marlene would love to come and play with _chibi-shachou_ at the lodge too. Cloud’s been there before, he must’ve told you how amazing the scenery looks over there.”

“Yeah, I’m sure the kids will love it there…but I’m not the one who’s really curious about Sui’s mother and all - Cloud’s more interested in that.”

“Oh? I didn’t reckon that he’s the nosy type.”

“He’s particularly interested why both Shinra father and daughter had traces of Mako infusion in their eyes.”

Reno looked away and scratched his head. “That…you need to ask _shachou_ himself.”

  
\---  
  
  


As the day comes to an end, the kids began to bid farewell to each other because their parents were calling. Reno thought that they should go home as well, but the kids were pretty insisting on staying back for dinner. Reno then called home to inform that Sui will be having dinner at Seventh Heaven, in which Rufus sounds very reluctant to allow, but he relented.

Sui had fun learning how to make spaghetti carbonara with Tifa and the kids, while Cloud and Reno were having small talks about the situation of bandits and monsters at the outskirts of Edge.

After dinner, they left immediately because the bar have to open. Sui thanked them for the meal and bid farewell, and then she walked together with Reno to a Shinra-owned public parking space where they parked their car earlier; it's a bit far from Seventh Heaven, since Reno didn’t want their car to draw too much attention like before. 

It’s after-work hours at the district, and many people were out in the streets again to shop and dine. As the two walked down amongst the stream of people, Sui was once again drowned in amazement.

However, as they passed by a few families walking down the street happily with their parents, it wasn’t quick before Sui realized that something’s missing. After a day of beaming smiles shining across her face, of course Reno quickly realize the long face.

“Something’s wrong, _chibi-shachou_?”

“Reno…I might not know much about the world, but…I know that my life’s not normal, right?”

Reno stopped on his tracks and turned to her.

“I don’t go to school like others, we don’t live in the city, and everyone around me is always saying something about not mentioning daddy’s name in the public and having to be careful with it! It’s not normal!”

“And what is wrong with that?”

Sui looked up. “Huh?”

“Everyone’s got their own story to live! You may think that everyone has the same kind of life and you’re the odd one out, but that’s just from the surface; and being different is not always a bad thing - it what makes you unique!”

Sui silenced for a while, and Reno wondered if he said it simple enough for a little child to understand. But then Sui ran towards Reno and grasped on his waists.

Reno didn’t understand what made Sui so clingy all of a sudden, but perhaps she’s tired. So then, he picked her up and carried her all the way to the car.

She fell asleep on the drive home, and by the time they arrived, she was already awake again - only to change her clothes and brush her teeth, and then she was sent straight to bed. Rufus didn’t have the chance to tuck her in as he was still drowned in paperwork in the office, leaving the whole duty to a maid and left Reno to supervise.

Afterwards, Reno reported back to Rufus. “Princess has been safely tucked in bed, _shachou."_

“Thank you for your help today, Reno.” Rufus said, “You’re dismissed.”

Reno opened his mouth to say something, but he decided to just call it in for the day. He then retreated to his quarters, where he lie down on his bed and thought about what Sui said on their way home.

“Normal, huh…”

 _So much for me lecturing her about a normal life,_ Reno thought. _I don’t have any sense of a normal life anymore; none of us at Shinra does. Her existence wasn’t exactly what I would call natural either, but…_

_She doesn’t need to know now. Not soon._

_Either way, one day when she found out...I can only hope that Sui and her father can resolve this as peacefully as possible._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I decided to expand this story from the random one shot I wrote ten years ago. I hope you guys enjoy it! 
> 
> By the way, Sui (水) means 'water'. According to the Five Elements philosophy in Japanese Buddhism, water represents the fluid, flowing, and the formless things in the world.


	3. What Fathers Must Do

Today, Rufus took Sui to the Shinra Offices in the city. They’re meeting someone ‘quite important’ he said, so she’s dressed quite neatly today; a knee-length white coat and a black dress underneath, along with a pair of white stockings with laces and a pair of black ankle boots - all to match her daddy’s three-layered suit.

Sui have followed Rufus to the offices on several occasions, but this is the first time that she was told that she will join the meeting in her daddy’s office and they expect her to be on her best behavior for the important guest; usually, she would be told to wait for her daddy to finish his meeting in the lounge, where she would draw, watch some cartoons on TV, or play games with one of the Turks and then they will go for a meal at the restaurant in one of the top floors of the building; the whole place will be reserved by Rufus as they are very careful on hiding Sui’s existence as a Shinra heiress to the public. Sui always loved to dine there - she loved to see the city from above, watching the cars and the people go. However, she disliked the view at the other side of the building where she could see the ruins of Midgar. She always said that the ruins of the old city, especially where the old Shinra building shows, is creepy. She didn’t know why, even though she had no memory about the city at all.

She told Tseng and her father about this, in which they both told her not to think much about it.

When they arrived, the two immediately escorted right into the president’s office because their guests have been waiting. Before they entered the room, Rufus stopped in front of the door and bent his body as he spoke to Sui. “Now you wait here until Tseng tells you to come in, okay?”

Sui nodded, and then her father disappeared behind the door with Tseng, while she waited outside the office with Reno.

“Reno, who are we meeting today?”

The red-haired Turk shrugged.

A minute passed before Tseng opened the door and told Sui to come and join them inside.

As she stepped inside the office, she saw her father sitting at the lounge area, across him was a plump blonde-haired woman and a dark-skinned man with grey curly hair, both wearing formal outfits. She also noticed Uncle Reeve, who was standing near her father.

“Oh! What a beautiful little lady!” the woman gushed. “What’s your name, sweetheart?”

Sui turned to Tseng, in which he just gave a nod. She then turned to the guests again and spoke, “A pleasure to meet you; my name is Sui Shinra.” - giving a little curtsy at the end.

“A pleasure to meet you too, Sui.” the man said. “What a well-mannered young lady! You’ve done very well teaching her, Rufus.”

Sui’s eyes widened - it’s rare that adults around them would call her father’s name so casually; it’s always either _shachou o_ r Mr. Shinra. Sometimes they would call him President Shinra, but he seemed to dislike it.

“Thank you, Uncle Hammond.” Rufus said, “I still have a lot to learn, though. Plus, I couldn’t do it without the help of my loyal staffs.”

“Given the circumstances, you’ve done an excellent job.” the lady said. “I’m sure that she’s going to be a remarkable woman in the future.”

Sui smiled and thanked the lady. And then, Rufus beckoned her to come and sit next to him. The conversation then went forward, while Sui remained still. As the conversation grew longer, the man that Rufus called Uncle Hammond earlier grew concerned.

“Rufus,” he said, cutting the conversation.

“Yes, Uncle Hammond?”

“Your daughter…is she all right?”

Rufus turned towards Sui, and she still remained sitting nicely like a porcelain doll.

“Is something the matter, Uncle Hammond?”

“She’s…very still, Rufus. Children don’t usually behave like that.”

Rufus then calmly called her name, and she immediately responded. He then opened his arms and beckoned her to give him a hug, where she immediately smiled and immediately threw herself to Rufus’ arms. He embraced her gently and caressed her hair for a while, and he kissed her forehead. Meanwhile, the two elder guests sighed in relief, but it’s pretty clear that they still remain unsure.

“Rufus, do you mind if we ask some questions to her?” the lady asked.

“Go on, Aunt Eleanor.” Rufus said, repositioning Sui to sit on his laps and face the guests.

“Sui, do you enjoy living with your father?”

Sui nodded. “Yes, Auntie. I do.”

“What do you usually do together with him?”

“Um… when he’s not busy working, we will go walk around the lodge with Dark Nation, watch some movies on TV, read some books, or he will try teaching me something - like chess or piano. Sometimes I would draw, and he would sit near me while he’s reading something. Daddy always said my pictures are great, and he told me that I’m going to be a great artist in the future!”

“Does he ever make you angry or sad?”

Sui shook her head. “No, daddy loves me very much. Why should I?”

Sui might not realize it, but Rufus felt a hole just tore inside his chest the moment she said that. 

“Sui, do you prefer living here or in Wutai?” Uncle Hammond asked.

“Umm…back then I have mommy, grandpa, and grandma. The food in Wutai is also tasty, but… I don’t have any friends there. I was always too sick to go out and play with the other kids outside. And…there’s no one else left in Wutai anymore…” she said, turning her gaze towards the floor. The two elders thought that Sui was about to cry, but instead, she looked up and turned to her father. “But here, I have daddy!”

The little girl was smiling so sincerely to him, and he was speechless; and then she continued on talking. “I don’t really remember the moment I was taken away from Wutai…but I remember feeling very sick and weak, and then suddenly I felt something very cold, but not for too long; I began to feel so much better and I know that my sickness was going away. That’s when I realized that daddy was holding me in his arms, and somehow I just knew that he’s my daddy! And then I was taken to Healen Lodge, and bit by bit the doctors there helped me to be healthy! And then there’s also Tseng, Rude, Reno, Elena, my nannies…and Uncle Reeve! And I also have many friends in the city! So I guess here is better!”

Rufus might not realize it, but a proud smile have already creased across his face - he couldn’t help it, especially after Sui landed a kiss on his cheek and she squeezed his neck to embrace him once more. Reeve wished he could snap a photo of it right now; he tried so hard not to laugh, as it is a precious father-daughter moment between the two, but the face that Rufus was making was _unbelievable._ If someone told him that Rufus Shinra would show a glowing smile like this five years ago, he’d probably thought the person was getting too high on an expired potion.

Seeing how the two elder guests were now having warm smiles all over their faces, Rufus then told Sui to go outside and wait in the lounge while he’s finishing his meeting. “I won’t take long, Sui. I promise. Tseng, go with her, would you?”

Sui then politely excused herself out of her room with another curtsy before Tseng escorted her out. After the Turk closed the door behind him, Rufus then turned to his guests once more.

“She’s such an angel - you’re a very lucky person to have a daughter like her, Rufus.” Aunt Eleanor said.

“Indeed,” Rufus said. “And I don’t plan to take it for granted.”

“You had me worried for a second there, though.” Uncle Hammond said, “When the child froze like a stone…I thought she was raised the way you did back when you were her age. You used to behave like that as well because you feared your father.”

“Well, I did tell the truth, didn’t I? I am trying my best to be a different man from my father.” Rufus assured, his face now returned back to his usual professional manner. “The child itself did carry some physical and mental problems from the beginning; she wasn’t born healthy, and I wasn’t there during her first years of her life; I had no idea how she was brought up. Wutai clearly didn’t have the medical facilities like Shinra has, hence why I decided to prolong my stay in Healen Lodge so that the doctors and researchers could study her up close. I want to make sure that she’s going to grow up normally and have the cure for issues that may affect both her physical and mental growth.”

“Of course, Rufus - we completely understand.”

“Right; now that I’ve proven enough, let’s get on with our initial talk. Reeve, if you please take over?”

Reeve then stepped forward, and he began to lead the meeting once more.

—-

“Tseng, why was I called in to the office today? Who are those people?” Sui asked. She was given a set of crayons and a sketchpad, and happily doodled away on the coffee table while her knees kneeled on the carpet.

“They’re distant relatives of your father, Miss Sui - from your grandmother’s family.” Tseng answered. “Your father is trying to build a children’s hospital in the city right now, and he wanted Sir and Lady Corvinus to support him. Your presence was to assure them that your father has good intentions for children.”

“Is it important that daddy gets support from them?”

Tseng nodded. “Indeed. They were famous specialist doctors in Junon before they retired, if your father gets their support, many people would support them too.”

“Why is it important that daddy gets support from other people? Can’t he build things on his own because he have a big company?”

“You’ll understand this better in the future, Miss Sui. However, all that I can say is that when you want to build something for the greater good, you will need lots of people to support you - even if you already have enough resources at hand.”

Sui quieted or a while, before she said “Okay then,” and turned her focus back to her drawing. Meanwhile, Tseng was glad that he managed to answer the little lady’s question while averting the difficult truth; that the couple were initially heavily doubting Rufus’ intentions to build a charitable children’s hospital as Shinra was more than well-known to conduct human experimentations in the past. Rufus then suggested that he provided a proof of his change of heart to the two retired doctors; his own daughter.

Of course, Rufus’ project on the hospital was also to raise morale on Shinra’s image, but Tseng had a feeling that it was the pursuit of trying to make Sui a healthy child was what inspired him to build a children’s hospital; even without the Stigma, there were many children in the city that requires medical help. Healen Lodge is far too expensive for a regular family to afford, while the city’s central hospital kept struggling with overcapacity problems.

With Sir and Lady Corvinus backing the hospital project, people would be eager to support, and investors will happily shell some monetary support for the project as well; not that money was a problem to the company, but it was more to securing connections and company rebranding. Perhaps some would think that he’s using his own daughter for his personal gain, but it’s simply what the _shachou_ thought what he must do, and Tseng was in no place to criticize that.

It wasn’t until half an hour later when Elena entered the room and told Sui that her father is finished. They’re heading out for lunch now, but instead of the usual restaurant, Rufus decided to take her to Seventh Heaven.

Earlier today, Reno received a call from Tifa, asking whether Sui will be available to join them at the bar for lunch or not; Denzel and Marlene wanted to try baking some apple pie for desert too, and they were asking if Sui could join them or not.

Initially, Reno wanted to decline - mentioning that the _shachou_ might want to spend lunchtime with his daughter. However, Tifa said that Sui’s father is more than welcome to join their lunch - provided that he doesn’t mind some humble, country-style home cooking.

And much to everyone’s surprise, Rufus agreed.

—-

When they arrived, Cloud was the one who opened the door. He’s definitely unhappy when he saw Rufus, but then immediately loosened up his face upon realizing that Sui was there too.

After Cloud let them in, along with Reno and Rude (Tifa invited them to come along as well, because the two would often accompany Sui during her playtime and became quite close with the kids). Denzel and Marlene called Sui to come to the kitchen and she ran up to the bar counter immediately. The kids then gave her an apron, and she quickly took off her coat and gave it to Reno while she put on her apron, washed her hands, and joined them cooking. Reno thought that Rufus would comment on something - since this is the first time he saw Sui entering the bar kitchen. But he didn’t. Instead, he took a seat at one of the tables with Reno and Rude sitting across and took his phone out of his suit pocket. Cloud then went to the upstairs area of the bar to sort out some papers regarding to his delivery service receipts, mentioning to just call him downstairs when the food is done, while the kids continued on cooking with Tifa.

Rufus was checking work messages on his phone until he noticed a decent aroma coming from the stove; he decided to get up from his seat and moved closer towards the bar.

“Nibelheim-style beef stew?” Rufus asked. Tifa turned around, and was surprised to see the President standing up close.

“Yes,” Tifa said. “I hope you don’t mind eating this kind of food for lunch.”

“My caretakers would often make this for me when I lived in Nibelheim.” 

Tifa’s eyes widened.

“Is it really that surprising?”

“Yeah…it’s just that, I thought you’re the type who eats some high-class expensive food all the time, always living in one of those luxurious, upscale cities."  
“Not at all. Like Sui, I wasn’t born a healthy child. Before I was sent to school in Junon, I spent a lot of time in Nibelheim because the doctors suggested that countryside air would be much healthier for me. I remembered my caretakers would take me to the square in the afternoons from time to time, but I would spend most of the time sitting on a bench reading some books because I don’t know how to talk with the village kids.”

“Yeah, I think I recalled seeing an older blonde-haired boy from the city who always dresses too neat and would always sits on the bench accompanied by one or two people in dark blue suits. I forgot his name, though - maybe it was you?” Tifa chuckled.

Rufus shrugged. “Maybe.”

Meanwhile, the kids were getting rowdy with their cooking. Their hands and faces were getting covered with flour and various condiments; Tifa wanted to tell the kids to cut it out - knowing that Rufus might be upset that Sui’s expensive clothing might get stained. But no warnings came out of the president’s mouth even though a huge splotch of tomato juice just stained Sui’s skirt. Instead, Tifa was left in awe that Rufus was showing a tender expression that she thought the president would never be able to pull in front of others as he observed the children.

“You can sit there and watch the kids, you know.” Tifa said, gesturing towards the barstools.

“If you don’t mind,” Rufus said. He then moved towards the barstool when one of the kids dropped a knife on the floor.

The kids immediately stopped as they heard the knife clanging loudly on the floor, and Tifa immediately scolded them for not being careful. Meanwhile, Rufus bent down to pick up the knife. He was about to hand it over to Tifa when the bar door suddenly opened.

“Marlene! Daddy’s here-“

The whole bar froze in silence as Barret suddenly entered Seventh Heaven, and what came into his view was Rufus Shinra holding a kitchen knife in his hand, and Tifa and the kids were standing behind the counter.

“What in the…”

“Barret, I want you to please calm down and-“

Tifa’s warning fell on deaf ears. Barret was immediately raged and transformed his mechanical arm into a gatling gun, ready to charge at Rufus. “YOU! SHINRA BASTARD! GET AWAY FROM MY DAUGHTER!”

In a split second, chaos ruptured inside the bar.

Sui had somehow jumped off the counters and stood right in front of Barret’s gatling gun, pointing her slingshot gun towards Barret’s eyes while her other hand holding a rolling pin, ready to bash on Barret’s head. Reno and Rude were also off their seats, pointing their weapons towards Barret, ready to charge at him anytime.

Meanwhile, Rufus calmly placed the knife on the counter, and turned towards Sui and Barret.

“Sui, stop! Lower your weapon!”

“No,” she hissed. Hearing the way she spoke just now, Marlene and Denzel flinched.

 _“Chibi-shachou,_ please drop your weapon. We’ll take care of this.” Reno persuaded. Sui didn’t budge at all.

 _“I must protect my father,”_ she said, in Wutaian language.

 _“Sui, he’s not an enemy.”_ Rufus said, slowly approaching her with both of his hands in the air. _“Drop your weapon now.”_

_“He’s going to hurt you, father.”_

_“He’s not. Trust me.”_

Sui would not budge, while Barret froze. He have fearlessly faced Shinra enemies and killed them without hesitation, but never did he have to face a child younger than his daughter like this. The tension finally broke when Marlene ran over towards the two and she jumped to clung on Barret’s neck.

“Sui, daddy, please don’t hurt each other!”

It was Marlene’s begging that finally made Sui lowered both of her hands, and dropped the rolling pin on the floor. Rufus reached out his hand towards her, in which she handed out her weapon voluntarily and Rufus clicked on the switch to revert the slingshot gun back into a stick, and he placed it in to his inner suit pocket. During this time, Cloud came downstairs carrying his sword.

“What’s going on here?” he asked.

“Just a simple misunderstanding.” Rufus said, pulling Sui closer to him as she was shifted to stay behind his back. “Now please, Mr. Wallace. Lower your weapon and we’ll leave without a fuss.”

“You don’t need to!” Tifa yelled. “Barret, it’s your turn to put down your weapon and listen on what we have to say!”

—-

While Denzel, Sui, and Marlene finished up the cooking with Rude’s assistance, the adults went to sit at a table in the corner and settled down things. Tifa did most of the talking, explaining to Barret about everything - who Sui is, and why Rufus is here having lunch with them. 

“…and that’s what’s been happening. I hope you understand now.”

Barret was clearly reluctant; never in his dreams that he’ll let a Shinra offspring be anywhere near Marlene, let alone be playmates; but one thing for sure, he also didn’t want the kids to be muddled up in adults’ politics - especially for something that happened in the past. Besides, they don’t really have much reasons to fight each other anymore now that they share a vision; restoring the world and making up for past mistakes. Barret then apologized for the mess he did, in which Rufus also said the same thing.

“After all, as fathers we just wanted to do our best to protect our daughters. I think it’s only fair, given that they unconditionally love us to the point that they would literally throw themselves at us not to see us hurt.”

And again, never in his dreams that Barret thought he’ll be on the same page with Rufus Shinra. But as he glanced towards Marlene, who is patiently teaching Sui on how to make the lattice top crust of the apple pie, he finally understood what it meant to forgive and accept a new reality; that Shinra and AVALANCHE should no longer be enemies.

—-

When lunch is finally served, Sui then introduced herself properly to Barret and apologized for her earlier actions. Barret also apologized, and thanked her for being Marlene’s friend. Afterwards, everyone took a seat at the dining table and dig in to the meal immediately; other than the beef stew, they were also serving some salad, mashed potatoes, buttered cabbage, and some homemade dinner rolls that Tifa made the day before. As the dishes were passed on, the kids proudly shared on who made what; Denzel helped with the mashed potatoes; Marlene washed and chopped the vegetables, and Tifa let Sui handle the stove to boil and stir the buttered cabbage. Rufus praised Sui for her efforts, which in which Tifa was silently relieved for - he didn't mind his child doing such activities. When she began joining their cooking sessions in the bar, both Rude and Reno said that she never even stepped into the kitchen at the lodge before; they were unsure at how the _shachou_ would react if he knows, but it turned out just fine after all. 

At first, Tifa, Cloud, and Barret were surprised at how Rufus just scarfed down the food like no tomorrow; even the sight of him willing to sit at a humble bar for a simple countryside meal for lunch was already shocking for them.

“Do you like the food, daddy?” Sui asked.

Rufus turned to Sui and wiped his mouth with a napkin before he answered. “Of course. Nibelheim-style beef stew was my favorite back when I was your age - I haven’t had this kind of food in a very long time.”

“Perhaps we could ask the chefs to serve this at home too,” she suggested. 

“Brilliant idea. Maybe you can cook together with them like you always do here?”

“Why don’t you cook with me, daddy?”

This time, even Rude and Reno’s eyes went wide - the _shachou,_ cooking at home with an apron over his designer three-layered suit? That’s something that they never even imagined before!

Meanwhile, Rufus began to chuckle. “Oh, I haven’t been hanging out in the kitchen for a long time, my dear! Perhaps I should just wait in the dining room until you finished cooking!”

Sui pouted. “Nooo, daddy! You’re going to cook with me!”

Rufus was laughing even louder as his daughter playfully pounced at his arm, until she said “Even Cloud does the cooking in here sometimes, so why don’t you cook with me at home?”

Rude and Reno almost choked on their food. Barret and Tifa’s jaw dropped, while Cloud dropped his spoon to the floor and he immediately bent over to pick it up, but took his sweet time to sit back up - he didn’t dare to look at Rufus in the eye anymore.

“What’s that? Are you saying that Strife may be a better cook than me?”

Sui shrugged. “Maybe? I never saw you cook!”

“Well then, perhaps we should invite everyone to come over for a barbecue at Healen once summer is here? You and your friends can go fishing in the river, and I’ll handle the grill once you caught some fish.”

“Really?”

“That is, if everyone is okay with it. There are some lodges in Healen that can be used for recreational guests, we can visit the summer night market at Kalm, and there’s the chocobo farm nearby too.”

Upon hearing chocobo farm being mentioned, both Denzel and Marlene piped out and immediately begged to the adults whether they can go or not.

“Once the school holidays start then? How about it, Barret?” Cloud asked.

“Alright, I’ll make sure to be there too.”

The kids immediately cheered, and they went on to babble so excitedly about the plans that they could do - campfire, barbecue, swimming at the river - it’s going to be a perfect summer vacation!

Tifa reminded the kids to mind their manners and finish their food first, and they immediately silenced and resumed back on their meals. Rufus was silently impressed at how she managed to discipline the kids without having to raise a voice, and he made a note to discuss about it with her later.

After they finished their meals, Denzel and Sui went to play outside with Reno. Rude offered Tifa to help with the dishes, but Tifa firmly said that it’s Marlene’s turn today. So then, Rude went to stand near Rufus as they discussed a plan about clearing up a land at the new sector in Edge - in which Rude immediately understood that this may be for the hospital project that they discussed earlier at the office.

\---

“Hey Marlene, what do you think about the Shinra kid?” Barret asked - he's busy scrubbing one of the larger boiling pots while his daughter was taking care the smaller plates and utensils. 

“Sui? What about her?”

“You seem to be unafraid of her, even though I just went head-to-head with her.”

“Well, it wasn’t my first time seeing her in action,” Marlene said, “The first time I saw it, she saved me and Denzel on our way home from school - that was actually how we met.”

“Yeah, Tifa told me about it.” Barret said.

“I know who her father is, daddy.” Marlene reassured, “We learn about him in school; our teacher was an AVALANCHE supporter, and she would told us many horrible things about Shinra back then when Midgar was standing; I know she’s been telling so many stories about AVALANCHE’s heroisms, but she got some of the facts wrong and would often exaggerate, because I’ve heard all the true stories from the heroes themselves a million times!” she said, looking at Barret with a proud smile. “Denzel and I decided to be friends with Sui because she had nothing to do with what Shinra did in the past, and I know that Sui’s daddy have been helping out Mr. Tuesti’s company to restore the world. Also…I know that she’s different than us, but I know that she would never harm her friends on purpose. In fact, she will try her hardest to protect us as much as she could - just like how she tried to protect her daddy earlier.”

Barret nodded, taking in what his little girl has been saying.

“Hey Marlene…one more thing,”

“Yes, daddy?”

“How much do you understand about what’s so different about her, actually? Did she ever say anything about it?”

Marlene shrugged. “I don’t really know, honestly. But she’s younger than me, and she can already fight like Cloud and Tifa did - of course she’s no ordinary kid. Cloud have been wanting to ask Sui’s daddy about it and he also told me to be careful around her because we don’t really know what she’s really capable of, but big sister assured me that she’s a good girl and we should be her good friends.”

Barret knew what she meant - somehow, Aerith talked to his little girl more than to anyone in the group these days. He knew that he could trust Aerith’s judgment more than anything, and she would never let harm come to the children’s way. Still, there's some uneasy feeling left in his gut. 

“Hey Marlene, how about if you go outside and play too? Let me take care the rest of the dishes.”

“Really? But…”

“It’s okay, I’ll go talk to Tifa.”

“Okay then. Thanks, daddy!” Marlene said, putting the plate back into the sink and gave Barret a peck on his cheek before she dried her hands and ran out the door. Tifa was about to stop her, but Barret told her to let Marlene be as he wanted the adults to have a proper conversation without the kids hearing. Tifa then suggested that everyone moved to the bar counter so that Barret can keep on doing the dishes, while she went to prepare some light alcoholic drinks as well to lighten the mood of the conversation.

“I have so many questions about the little girl you keep, Shinra.” Barret admitted. “But I have a feeling that you’re not ready to blurt them all out just yet.”

“I don’t intend to keep it a secret from all of you forever,” Rufus said, taking a sip out of the beer that Tifa served. “However…I’m still gathering some information myself. Hopefully that by the time you make that visit to Healen with the children, I'll be ready to share what you need to know.”

“Must we really know about this, though?” Tifa wondered. “If it’s just for the sake of our curiosity-“

“I feel more comfortable if you guys know about it, in case something happened to me and I wouldn’t be able to help her one day.”

“Why trust us so much?” Cloud asked.

“All I can say for now is that…you might be the only ones who will be able to stop her if something goes wrong.”

And then, the conversation moved on to the land clearance project that Rufus proposed about. The piece of land that he was about to secure was heavy with monsters activity, and he hoped that he could get AVALANCHE’s assistance in clearing the place. As much as Cloud and Barret weren’t satisfied with Rufus’ vagueness about Sui, they know not to press for now and listen to his job proposal instead - after all, the compensation he offered was too good to be missed.

\---

About two hours later, the conversation finally wrapped up. The kids were finally back from the park, followed by a very exhausted Reno. Tifa quickly offered him a glass of cold soda with ice, while the kids begged for some orange juice. After they finished their drinks, Barret then announced that he will be taking Marlene out for the rest of the afternoon for some shopping and then dinner, while Cloud told Denzel that he had got him the Gelnika model kit that he had wanted for a long time, and they’re going to spend the whole afternoon building the kit together.

“I guess we’ll be taking our leave now,” Rufus said. “Thank you so much for the meal. It was very delicious.” 

“You’re very welcome,” Tifa smiled. “Please join us again next time.”

“Of course.”

“I hope you have a pleasant day,” Sui said, giving another curtsy.

“You too, Sui.”

The two Turks then headed to the door and held it open, while Rufus and Sui walked past with Barret and Marlene following behind them.

“Hey! Shinra!”

Rufus was just about to step out of the bar when Barret yelled out of nowhere. He turned back, and saw that the man was looking rather furious. _What now?_ Rufus thought. 

“Is there anything more I could help you, Mr. Wallace?”

“Why aren’t you holding your little girl’s hand?”

Rufus turned to Sui - who looked as confused as he is, and then to them.

“Is there something wrong? She can walk just fine on her own.”

Barret then let go of Marlene’s hand and went straight to Rufus, his hands gripping hard on the president’s shoulders. “I’m tellin’ ya - one day your little girl’s gonna be all grown up and she doesn’t event wanna be in the same room with you anymore! As a father, our job is to hold our daughter’s hand as we guide her path to the future! We need to hold their hand for as long as we can before she’s going be holding another man’s hand!”

Rufus blanked for a few seconds before he finally spoke again. “Alright, I understand - now can you please get your hands off my shoulders before the children thought we’re having a quarrel again?”

Barret then took his hands off Rufus’ shoulders, and stepped back towards Marlene and took her hand - as if he was showing him an example on how to do it. Did he really think that he’s that much of an idiot? _Probably yes,_ Rufus thought. _Why did I even bother to think about that?_

Rufus then turned to Sui and offered his hand, in which the little girl tilted her head in confusion. A frown creased on his face - _don’t tell me she doesn’t know…wasn’t all kids supposed to know what to do?_

Until he realized that he never held her hand before; he remembered how the girl didn’t even know what a hug was at first.

“Sui, give me your hand.”

Sui obeyed, and Rufus took her hand. As her hands gently slipped onto his own, he didn’t expect to feel anything special; and yet, he did. He couldn’t quite describe the feeling - it’s probably close to the feeling of having a perfectly fitted glove - a glove that you didn’t know was missing your entire life.

“Something wrong, daddy?”

Rufus smiled to his daughter and shook his head. “Nothing that you need to worry about. Let’s go.”

And then, he thanked Barret before he leave and the two walked out of the bar.

\---

As they headed to the parking lot, Sui began to tell Rufus what they were doing when they were playing at the park; they were playing cops and robbers with Reno (in which Reno was the robber, and he clearly underestimated how fast the two kids can run).

Just as they were about to cross the road between the shopping district, they saw Barret in the distance, walking along with Marlene being carried over her father’s shoulder.

Rufus turned towards Sui, who stared back at him.

“Uh, I know what you’re thinking, _shachou…_ and I don’t think that’s-“

It was too late; Rufus didn’t listen to Reno’s warning, and all of a sudden he already lifted Sui up and carried her in his arms.

“I can walk by myself just fine, daddy. You don’t need to carry me like a baby!”

Rufus tried his best not to let out a grunt, although he really underestimated at how heavy a little girl could be.

 _“Shachou,_ don’t push yourself.” Rude warned.

“I’m alright, don’t worry.” Rufus insisted, “After all, Sui is growing more and more each day. One day I wouldn’t be able to carry her like this anymore, so I'm savoring the moment.” he said, planting a light kiss on his little girl’s forehead.

“Perhaps one day she will be carried by another man as a bride after they’ve said their vows…” Reno teased - in which he received an immediate glare from the _shachou,_ while the Turk just chuckled. He didn't know that the _shachou_ would react like that. 

“I don’t think I’ll allow her to marry anyone. Perhaps I should write that down in my will...”

Rude and Reno sighed - one meeting with that AVALANCHE dad and he’s beginning to turn into a doting daddy....

\---

The next day, Rufus had to dismiss his schedule the entire day and confine himself in bed because he was suffering from a major back pain - his doctor did warn him not to do any heavy lifting or rigorous exercise as he was still actually on recovery phase from the Diamond Weapon attack incident.

It would take a while before Rufus can carry Sui in his arms again with no physical consequence afterwards, but nevertheless, he never forgot to hold his daughter’s hand anymore whenever they walk together.

After all, it’s simply what a father must do.


	4. Until You Feel Better

Rufus was sitting in his office at the lodge, with his palms clasping onto each other, his elbow resting on the desk while both his thumbs were resting on his forehead. Paperwork was piling up his desk, several more documents and e-mails filled his desktop computer.

And he wasn’t touching them at all.

No, he wasn’t overworked nor overwhelmed; he never had any trouble multitasking, nor that he’s the micromanaging type - he always made sure to keep his workload manageable. After all, he paid his employees to do their job, and if they’re not doing it right, he just needs to fire them and find another.

His thoughts were full of what to do with Sui.

—-

Earlier that day, Rufus had just returned to the lodge after a short business meeting in Kalm. Sui was watching television with Rude and one of her nannies. As much as Rufus disliked his child watching domestic entertainment with almost no educational values, he tried not to pry too much on it; he have opened the opportunity for his daughter to befriend anyone without looking at social class, and he also don’t want her to grow completely out of the loop from commoners’ life and become too much of a snob like him. Besides, the Turks and her nannies made sure that she’s watching age-appropriate shows, and none of those garbage reality shows or news that might show ‘rumors’ about what’s going on with Shinra Company these days.

“Daddy,”

Rufus stopped in his tracks and turned to her. “Yes?”

“…Why are we not normal?”

Rufus’ eyes widened. Meanwhile, Rude and the nanny sighed and turned away their gazes.

 _“This question again…”_ Rude muttered under his breath, in which Rufus noticed; _again?_

“What do you mean, Sui?”

“That,” Sui pointed to the television, “Why did we never do that?”

Rufus turned towards the television, in which he immediately recognized the show; it was an old movie about a single father and his daughter who found a princess forcefully transported from a fairytale world, in which later the single father fell in love with the princess.

_Shit._

“Why did you never go out to the park or go shopping with me to the city? Why do I always have to go with the Turks?”

Rufus blanked, and realized that the movie was currently showing the scene where the father and daughter went out for shopping in the city together.

 _Oh._ He sighed in relief.

“Now why does this even bother you, Sui?”

Sui silenced.

“Everybody has a different way of living, didn’t we taught you that before? You don’t always need to follow what others do just because everyone else is doing it.”

Rude lets out an uncomfortable grunt. _That’s not what she meant,_ shachou…

“I’ve told you before repeatedly - you are unlike other children out there, and you need to understand that. Now be a good girl and-“

A moogle plush landed on Rufus’ face.

Rude and the nanny gasped; Sui have never behaved like this before. Nor that anyone other than Sui have ever dared to throw anything to the _shachou_ ’s face.

Meanwhile, Rufus was boiling with anger. His palms grew into a fist, and his eyes were dead set on the little girl’s face. He marched towards her, ready to strike a move.

_…You’re going to be a different man than your father. You’ve promised that!_

That sole inner voice was what stopped him.

He brought his palms to his sight, and quickly realized that he’s still wearing one of his special combat gloves and haven’t took it off before entering the lodge; he’s been out since morning for business meetings with a new client, and it’s been his habit since the old times to meet new clients while wearing combat gloves that were able to spark out electric jolts, given enough impact. It was merely for precautions in case the new clients would try to harm him, but had he lacked of self-control, he would’ve seriously injured his little girl.

Rufus looked up to Sui once more, who was now shielded by Rude with a Barrier spell. Sui herself was still sitting on the couch, her nanny protectively hugging her.

The president looked around, and saw that all his Turks were surrounding him; Reno already had his trusty rod out, while Elena and Tseng were standing by behind Rufus, ready to pull him away.

“…to your room, Sui.”

“Huh?”

“Go to your room.” Rufus hissed. “Your playtime today is dismissed.”

“But I promised Denzel and Marlene-“

_“Stay in your room and reflect on your behavior until I said so!”_

Rufus then stormed into his office immediately, leaving Sui with his trusted employees. Rude and Reno then escorted her to her room, while Elena went to talk to the nanny.

Sui didn’t let any single teardrop fall until his father went out of the room - something that Tseng have noticed, and he immediately understood why.

_She’s unable to cry in front of her father like normal children do._

Sighing, he followed the _shachou_ into his office.

\---

 _“Shachou,_ what just happened?” Tseng asked. 

Rufus was in the middle of taking off his gloves and threw it on the couch. He then hastily took a seat on his desk chair, letting out a deep sigh as he leaned back and slouched, his arms hanging off the sides.

“I have no idea…” he said, bringing one of his palms to cover his face. “I messed up terribly, didn’t I?”

“I don’t think so, _shachou.”_ Tseng said. “You’ve…never raised your voice like that to Miss Sui. Not that you’ve ever shown such emotions to her like that before.”

“…I almost hurt her.” Rufus said. “I didn’t even realize that my gloves weren’t even off yet when I was about to…to…”

“You asked us to take precautions in case you were about to hurt her. If you really did intend to hurt her from the start, you wouldn’t brief us to do so.”

“Those precautions were there because I never trusted myself!” Rufus yelled. He was banging his fists on his glass desk when Rude, Reno and Elena entered the office.

“Yo, princess is already secured inside her bedroom, _shachou.”_ Reno reported

 _“_ How is she doing?” Tseng asked.

“Crying. Quietly.” Rude said, “I told her that it’s ok to cry louder but…we all knew that she can’t.”

“For her to be able to cry alone is a relief already.” Elena added.

“What about you, _shachou?”_

Rufus took a deep breath, before sitting up and letting out a deep sigh. “I just…I don’t know, perhaps I wasn’t really cut out for this.”

The Turks sighed. _Not this again…_

“I almost hurt her over a petty quarrel; it was…just like what my father always did to me back then. Perhaps this was all a huge mistake-”

This time, Reno groaned loudly. “Geez, I can’t take this anymore! Yo, _shachou!_ Do you even know what’s she’s been fussing about?”

“I’m guessing that she’s just on that phase where she’s realizing that she’s different from the other kids and she feared that she’s missing out - something that I have predicted to happen when I’m letting her mingle with the common folks! Now, I know that I may look busy these past few weeks, but I know she’s been nagging everyone with questions on why is she different than other kids and all. And because she is born different, I must discipline her from early on about the fact that she’s not always going to have things go her way -just because we can afford anything being sold in the world, I’m not going to spoil her rotten!”

Reno shook his head in disbelief. “I can't believe you, _shachou…”_

“What do you mean?”

“She just wants to go out and play with you,” Elena explained. “This isn’t about fear of missing out or wishing to live like other people - she just wants to spend more time with you.”

“That’s true.” Rude said. “I noticed that when I took her out to the city, she would always stare at the kids who go out with their parents longingly. Sometimes when we tucked her in, she would ask why her father always looked so sad and tired; she’s been repeatedly suggesting that maybe a little fresh air every day like she always did in the afternoons would make his father smile and laugh a bit more, just like that time when we went to Seventh Heaven for lunch.”

"She once asked me why her father's name has to be kept secret from most people and why you don't really go out together with her in the public. She said secrets are mostly kept because it's embarrassing, did she embarrass you? Should she go back to Wutai instead? I tried to assure her that the reasons are nothing like that and you're proud of her - but she's a clever girl, sir. It’s getting hard to convince her.” Elena added. 

“All I can say is that...she’s always thinking about you, _shachou.”_ Tseng said.

—-

And then, Rufus asked his employees to leave him alone while he drowned himself to work - or that’s what he’s been attempting to. He kept on trying to read one document after another, but everything written there seemed to be written in a blur.

Hours went by so quickly - it’s four o’clock in the afternoon already, and he haven’t got anything done.

 _I can’t work like this,_ Rufus thought.

So then, he stepped out of his office and headed to Sui’s bedroom. He hesitated for a bit, before he finally braved himself to knock on the door.

No answer.

He knocked again, but it was still met with silence.

Wondering if she’s asleep, Rufus gently opened the door and saw her on the carpet, leaning by her bed with her face buried on a pillow.

“Sui?”

He heard a small whimpering sound, and he sighed in relief - well, she’s still responding to him, at least. He then walked closer and kneeled beside her.

“Look, I…I’m sorry for what happened.” he said, sighing. “I misunderstood what you meant, Sui. I didn’t know you thought of me that much, and I…I thank you for that.”

She still didn’t budge.

Rufus never thought that apologizing to a child would be this…difficult.

“Sui, can you please look at me?”

She didn’t turn.

And that’s when he noticed that her breathing sounded a bit odd.

“Sui?”

Rufus gently touched her shoulder, and immediately noticed that she’s burning up.

He quickly turned his daughter towards him, and saw that her face were flushing red, her eyes barely open. Elena was the first one who noticed that the _shachou_ has been frantically calling his daughter’s name, and when she entered the room, he was _frantic._

“I’ll call the doctors!” she said, and quickly ran out of the room. 

—-

“If we're lucky, this may just be influenza, sir.” the doctor announced. “We'll prescribe a few medicines for Miss Sui, and we'll need to keep her hydrated. After her recovery, it's expected that she will be easily exhausted for the next two or three weeks - keep her activities minimum until she regained her strength.”

Hearing that, Rufus instantly slumped on the floor and sighed in relief. _Nothing too serious,_ he thought.

“Sir, I said _‘if we're lucky’_ because knowing her circumstances, this might be something else entirely. This is her first fever after her last transfusion treatment - it’s too early to be relieved.”

The president looked up, letting out a disappointed grunt. But he knew that the doctor’s not to be blamed.

“We will put Miss Sui on an IV as she is already very dehydrated, and we will monitor her condition for the next few days. Also…you might want to be aware that there is a viral outbreak going on amongst children at the local public school in Edge right now; many children have caught chicken pox and the stomach flu for the past week. Some of my colleagues are currently assigned by the WRO to investigate the cause, and I remembered that Miss Sui have been playing with the local children in that area regularly - there is a good chance that she might have contracted some diseases from there.”

And then, he stood quietly as he held his little girl's hand while the doctors were giving her injections and inserted the IV needle on her other hand.

\---

That night, Rufus stayed at Sui’s bedside while he sorted out his work using his laptop. Any slight moan or cough would make him flinch; he’ll turn to his little girl and check if she needs anything. Despite being sick, she’s pretty independent; she insisted on drinking water by herself whenever she’s thirsty even though Rufus was more than ready to help her fetch her cup, and she repeatedly told Rufus that she’ll be okay - he can just go to his office to go back to work, or return his bedroom to rest. However, he refused.

Meanwhile, the Turks were all standing by Sui’s bedroom door.

“Sui can be really stubborn like her father, huh?” Elena remarked. “She’s behaving just like _shachou_ back when he was struggling with his recovery.”

“Still, I wished that _shachou_ would just rest for a little bit. If both of them fell sick, that’s gonna be really troublesome, yo.” Reno moaned.

“I guess…what happened earlier today still left him shaken,” Rude said. “Let’s just keep an eye on them for now.”

No one was able to convince Rufus to go back to his own bedroom that night. He fell asleep leaning by his little girl’s bed, his hands still holding on to the tiny hands that hung an IV drip.

\---

The next day was even worse - Sui threw up all morning, and her fever spiked so high as the day progressed that she began to have seizures.

As much as Rufus wanted to stay next to Sui all day, he had to let the team of doctors take care of his daughter. Plus, work demands came mercilessly; he had cancelled all meetings for the whole week, but that doesn’t stop the work e-mails coming; there are documents that he needs to read and sign - either to approve or reject; there are people demanding immediate answers from him; despite knowing that Sui is the most important thing for him, he knew that the lives of many out there cannot be compromised for the sake of one person.

While he forced himself to sit in his office and sort out everything, he gritted his teeth every time he overheard Sui coughing or throwing up. Despite Tseng telling him that it’s okay for him to close the office door so that he can fully concentrate on his work, Rufus told him not to.

There’s no rest for a Shinra President - and so is being a father. It’s a commitment of a lifetime.

He then began to understand why his father decided to ignore him and his half-siblings; leave them to employees to care. Being the president of such large corporation, it’s much easier to be barely involved with your family rather than having to constantly being emotionally invested with them; especially when your work have already taken so much of your time and energy. Children that were born with such privilege should understand the price of their privileges from early on.

_No. I’m not the same person like him._

And thus, as soon as he is finished for the day, he returned to Sui’s bedroom and stayed with her.

\---

On the third day, Sui’s fever was still spiking up high. Although she doesn’t have seizures anymore, she’s definitely tired of vomiting and going back and forth to the bathroom all night. She refused to eat all day - this, of course, have made Rufus even more stressful - and so are the Turks.

Reeve and Tseng have managed to persuade Rufus to let them take over his work today, at least; he had completely ignored the doctors advice telling him to rest, insisting that he’s fine and stayed next to her, sometimes trying to convince his little girl to eat for a little bit. Nothing that she usually likes managed to stay long enough inside her stomach - not that the food recommended by the hospital nutritionist was appetizing enough for her anyway.

It was sunset when Rufus finally raised the white flag - his eyes felt heavy, and his little girl wasn’t getting any better. Although he managed to steal a few power naps whenever he got a chance to lie down with Sui, his mind couldn’t be told off to shut down even for one bit. Rufus turned his gaze towards the owl-shaped alarm clock sitting on the bedside table; Sui needed to take her night medicines soon, which means that she will need to eat. However, Rufus knows that both of them have had enough episodes of her vomiting; even the sound of the food cart being wheeled in was more than enough to make her frown.

“Sui; is there anything that you would like to eat?”

Sui shook her head.

“Well, what if you’re not sick and stuck in bed right now? Is there anything you’d like? The pasta at the Shinra Offices restaurant, perhaps? You always liked to eat that whenever I took you there…

“Anything…?”

Rufus nodded. “Yes, Sui. Anything - as long as the doctors are okay with it.” _I don’t care if it would cost me a million gil, I’d totally fetch any food that she wants right now._

Sui then beckoned Rufus to come closer to her, and then she whispered her answer.

Rufus’ eyes widened - not because that it’s a meal that would really cost him a million gil, but rather…something that he knew he couldn’t buy so easily.

“Alright, I’ll try, okay?”

He then fetch his cellphone from his pocket and began to dial a number…

—-

Throughout her life, Tifa would've never imagined that she would one day willingly jump into a Shinra-owned luxury vehicle, escorted by two Turks, to fulfil a personal request given by the president of the company himself.

And yet, she just did. 

Tifa was in the middle of cooking dinner for Cloud and the kids when the Seventh Heaven phone rang. She answered it, thinking that it must be a customer for Strife Delivery Service.Instead, it came from Rufus Shinra - or whom she liked to mention as 'Sui’s daddy' in front of the kids nowadays. He requested whether she would be available to go to Healen Lodge immediately, to cook a meal for Sui. 

Tifa had all the good excuses to reject the request. Initially, she wanted to; she did heard from Reno that Sui had been sick for a few days, and he have been asking whether the kids at Seventh Heaven are alright or not. They are healthy, although she did receive news that a lot of kids in the neighborhood have fallen sick.

It was the distress she sensed in Rufus’ voice that made her agree to come to Healen Lodge; he mentioned that Sui had lost her appetite due to her fever and vomiting, and when he asked her what she wanted, she requested for “Tifa’s chicken soup.”

Tifa remembered making that with the kids on one rainy day. Only once, but Sui seemed to like it so much.

Well, on a day when you’re feverish with an upset stomach, craving for a hearty chicken soup can’t be helped.

Yes, Rufus could’ve easily asked one of his personal chefs at the Lodge to make a simple homemade chicken soup, or maybe ask Tifa to make a portion at the bar and get it delivered to the lodge; however, there must be something else to that made the man asked her to come to the Lodge personally.

When she told Cloud that she’s heading to Healen Lodge for Rufus’ personal request, he was upset; he immediately told Tifa to reject it, and he was about to call Rufus himself to tell him that Tifa’s not going anywhere tonight, but she firmly said that she’s not coming there for Rufus; she’s coming for Sui.

“You’re going too far, Tifa. She’s not even your child!”

Tifa knew that, and she still insisted that she’s going. Marlene and Denzel heard the commotion and came downstairs to the bar to ask what was going on, and Tifa explained that they’re going to have to continue cooking dinner by themselves as Sui is terribly sick and her daddy needs Tifa's help to cook a healthy meal. 

When the children have no objections - even asking Tifa to take good care of their friend - Cloud knew that there’s no stopping her anymore. He then offered to take her to Healen Lodge with his motorcycle, but Tifa assured that Rufus is sending a car to pick her up - which is much safer to travel with during sundown.

As much as Cloud wanted to come with her, she asked him to stay back and watch the bar with the kids.

—-

As soon as Tifa arrived at Healen Lodge, she was immediately escorted to Rufus’ personal lodge; Cloud was right - the place is amazing. Although it was getting dark, the beautiful landscape of the area was still pretty clear. Rather than a health facility, it looked more like a luxury resort - the kids would totally love to spend their summer vacation here.

Inside the lodge, it was Elena who greeted her first, and thanked her for coming all the way from Edge. She then lead the way to Sui’s bedroom, while Tifa observed the building - although it was more spacious than Seventh Heaven, it was much smaller than what she imagined of a Shinra’s choice of residence - in which she quickly reminded herself that this lodge is only temporary; Rufus was only meant to live here until his recovery, but he choose to stay longer when he brought Sui from Wutai. She was aware about a new Shinra mansion being built at the outskirts of the town - they probably planned to move in there after Sui is healthy enough.

Overall, the lodge did not feel like a health facility at all; instead, it looks just like a perfectly normal home of a family with child - there were some toys and plushes at the living room area, along with video game consoles near a large flat-screen television set; Tifa imagined that it’s probably Reno and Rude who plays them with Sui - Rufus would probably settle for the chess set lying by the window.

When Elena opened the door to Sui’s bedroom, they were greeted by a view of Rufus lying on the bed while Sui curled up next to him. Although he sounded quite distressed on the phone and the dark circles were quite visible below his eyes, he looked quite serene in his nap with his hand resting on his little girl’s body.

For a moment, Tifa have completely forgotten that this man was once a ruthless dictator.

 _“Shachou?”_ Elena called gently, and Rufus immediately opened his eyes. Upon realizing that Tifa was there, he slowly shifted himself - careful not to startle his little girl, and stepped off from the bed.

“Apologies for that, Miss Lockhart.”

“For what, exactly?”

“I asked you to come all the way here and I wasn’t greeting you in a proper manner.“

“It’s okay, you must be tired taking care of her. I know that taking care of a sick child can be quite stressful.” she said.

“…Daddy?”

The three adults immediately turned to the bed, where Sui is now awake. 

Rufus immediately kneeled beside her and helped her sit up. “Sui, look who’s here!”

Sui’s face immediately brightened when she noticed Tifa’s presence. She reached out her hands, beckoning for a hug. Tifa walked closer and immediately wrapped the little girl in her arms.

Meanwhile, Rufus and Elena was stunned.

“This is the first time she's eager for a hug from someone other than _shachou…”_ Elena remarked.

“I guess she really likes you,” Rufus said.

Tifa didn’t know why, but she’s happy to hear it; hugging Sui felt different than hugging Marlene or Denzel, whom she loved and cared so much, and yet…this little girl felt different to her in her arms. It’s like meeting again with a friend that she had lost a long time ago, but not quite.

 _...Why am I feeling like this towards Rufus Shinra's daughter?_ Tifa thought.

As Tifa slowly let go, she promised Sui that she will whip up a bowl of delicious chicken soup that she’s been craving for pretty soon.

“I can’t wait!” Sui beamed - the happiest she’s been ever since she fell sick, Rufus mentioned. 

So then, Tifa excused herself to start cooking while Elena escorted her to the kitchen area. Rufus got up and was about to join them as well, but Sui begged her daddy to stay with her.

“It’s okay. If Sui wants her daddy to stay with her, then you should stay.”

Defeatedly, he sat back on the bed and turned to Sui.

“Anything else, my dear?”

Sui smiled, and whispered her next request.

—-

Tifa had just finished cooking when Tseng walked into the kitchen.

“Everything okay?” he asked.

“Oh, yes - the kitchen staff is very friendly and helpful, and Elena has been a great assistant too! With all the best ingredients that this place has, I’m sure Sui will enjoy the meal I made!”

Tseng inspected the food, which was already loaded onto the food cart by one of the kitchen staffs. Knowing that Elena have been here the whole time and Tifa wouldn’t have the heart to slip anything into a meal intended for Sui, Tseng knew that he doesn’t need to do a taste test.

“Please bring the food to _shachou_ ’s personal chamber in the basement,” Tseng ordered, “Miss Sui and _shachou_ is currently there.”

Tifa’s eyebrows raised - _basement? What are they doing in there?_

“Come on, Tifa! We should join them too!” Elena said, grabbing her by her shoulders and pushed her forward.

“Why are you so excited all of a sudden?”

Elena smiled. “You’ll see!”

—-

Rufus’ personal chamber was located at the basement floor of the lodge. It wasn’t as gloomy or creepy as what Tifa had initially imagined; it was actually a very spacious lounge where Rufus kept his musical instruments and a personal bar. Having experience being a Shinra prisoner, she couldn’t help the negative thoughts that came first when she heard about a basement chamber. However, what she saw there left her stunned for a few seconds; Rufus was playing a song on the white grand piano, while Sui lie on the sofa with a pillow, a blanket, Dark Nation curling up on her side, and her IV hanging on a portable pole that was placed right behind the sofa.

Tifa didn’t know the song that Rufus was playing, but she liked it; she might not know much about musical techniques and all, but the sounds coming out of the Shinra president’s fingertips made the young bartender feeling so…warm.

“Can’t believe that _shachou_ can play such gentle music, huh?” Elena said - which made Tifa shocked; it’s like she could read her mind!

“It’s okay to be surprised - even I was shocked when I heard him playing the piano for the first time as well! Tseng said that it was the former First Lady who taught him the piano, and the way she played was similar to his; perhaps he was influenced by her. Piano was the only thing that bonded him with his mother, I heard.”

_Somewhere inside the ruthless Rufus Shinra, there is always a kind and gentle person deep down?_

_Hard to believe,_ Tifa thought.

And then, she glanced over to take a closer look at his face. And still, he had this serene look similar to what she saw earlier; the expression of a man who have felt peace.

The song came to an end, and Rufus turned towards the entrance area of the lounge, where Tifa, Elena, and Tseng stood. Tifa was about to say something, but Tseng stepped forward first.

“Dinner is ready for Miss Sui, _shachou.”_ the male Turk announced, pushing in the meal cart with a silver dome-shaped food cover on top of the soup Tifa made earlier. Next to the glass of water and eating utensils lied down neatly, there is a small platter filled with medicine tablets and a bottle of cherry-flavored cough syrup. “Miss Sui, it’s time for your meal.”

Sui got up from the sofa, and she sat straight as Tseng and Elena prepared a makeshift dinner table out of the meal cart, while Tifa and Rufus took a seat next to her.

“Go on, Sui. I think the food should be warm enough for you to eat now.”

Sui obediently grabbed the spoon and took a sip, and then she took another spoonful of soup, and then another, and then another…

Rufus was relieved to see that his daughter finally managed to eat without any hassle. It didn’t took long for Sui to finish her meal, and then she took her medicines with no complaint.

“Thank you for the meal, Tifa! It was very delicious!” she said, giving the bartender a hug.

“You’re very welcome, Sui.” Tifa said, stroking the little girl’s head gently as she returned the hug. “I’m glad you’re feeling so much better now!”

“You’re a lifesaver, Miss Lockhart.” Rufus said. “I wonder how I should repay you for all this trouble.”

Tifa shook her head. “No need - I came here on my own will, and I wanted to see Sui as well. I miss cooking with her at Seventh Heaven, you know!”

“Is that really okay?”

“You still owe us a barbecue, Mr. Shinra. Might wanna be careful not to make too much promises - it’ll be harder to keep them later!”

Rufus can only smile. He knew that there is no way that he would be able to compensate Tifa Lockhart with money - she’d beat him down before he could even grab his wallet. Not that he could easily give her luxurious goods either; she definitely won’t like being overcompensated with a petty item that costs as much as her property.

The President can only sigh - _oh Sui, you keep on making friends in places beyond my expectations, and now you’re making your daddy confused because you’re making me face a woman that he couldn’t please with money nor luxury…_

“Something the matter, Mr. Shinra?” Tifa asked.

"I beg your pardon?" 

"Why...are you looking at us like that?" 

Rufus twitched one of his eyebrows. "Like what?" 

"You're smiling...but you also look sad at the same time" 

Rufus chuckled. “Oh, it’s nothing.” he said, “Just…thinking about the future. Wondering what my daughter would be like when she grows up.” - an excuse, he admitted. He's used to lie and bluff in front of his clients, he could whip up one within seconds without even thinking. 

“Why’s that?” Tifa asked.

“I have no idea - the thought just came up,” he said. “But I know that she will be a very beautiful lady.”

Rufus then landed a kiss on Sui’s forehead, and the little girl giggled.

“Daddy, can you play another song on the piano?”

“Of course - what would you like me to play?”

“Anything,” she said.

“Alright,”

He then stood from his seat and moved towards the piano, and settled on the seat. As he placed his fingers on the ebony and ivory keys, he took a deep breath; soon enough, music filled the room once more.

As Rufus went through the song, Tifa remain seated at the sofa, with Sui lying down on her laps. She never heard the song before, and yet...the tune quickly catches her heart; especially each time Rufus played the crescendo part - it’s like the notes were beckoning her to stand up and dance along, but at the same time it made her heart so...content. She have heard many good songs before, but how this one particular song could make her feel energetic yet swooned with melancholic feelings all at the same time amazed her? Was Rufus really that good with the piano, or was the song really that good?

“Daddy said the song is about a beautiful, strong, and kind lady who would always smile in front of others, but at the same time, she always kept sadness within her heart.” Sui suddenly mentioned.

“That’s very peculiar,” Tifa remarked, “Did he tell you why?”

Sui shook her head. “Daddy said that I will only understand it when I’m older…but he said was that the lady was free to let go of her sadness, but she choose not to.”

 _That’s weird,_ Tifa thought. _I never thought that Rufus would be the type who would play riddles like these with his daughter._

“Was this song about your mommy?”

Again, Sui shook her head. “I don’t know. Daddy never told me.”

Tifa’s eyebrows twitched. _Huh?_

“I don’t think this is a song about my mommy, Tifa. I think this song suits you more.”

“What? It can’t be!”

Tifa didn’t realize that the song already came to an end when she raised her voice.

“What can’t be, Miss Lockhart?”

The bartender’s cheeks instantly flushed. “I, uh, nothing! Nothing! I just thought that…uh…anyway! I never heard this tune before! What was the title of the song?” she asked, trying to change the subject.

“Tifa’s Theme.”

“WHAT?”

Seeing how Tifa reacted, Rufus laughed. “I’m joking, Miss Lockhart. Don’t get so worked up.”

The bartender's fists quickly formed into a ball. She didn’t know what to say - why on earth did she felt more disappointed rather than relieved to hear that?

“That’s not a very nice joke, daddy.” Sui reminded. “I don’t think Tifa thinks it’s funny.”

Rufus immediately stopped laughing and stepped away from the piano. “You’re right. Apologies, Miss Lockhart. I got a little bit carried away.”

“…It’s fine.” Tifa murmured. “What was that song about anyway?”

“Like my daughter have said earlier - it’s about a woman; it doesn’t have a title, though. I wrote the piece a long time ago.”

“It’s really nice…I love it.”

“Thank you.”

The room turned into an awkward silence, but not for long. Sui beckoned for her daddy again, and this time, she requested that she wanted to go to the gardens.

“Please, daddy. I want to see the stars just for a little bit.”

Rufus wasn’t sure what to do - would the doctors be okay about this?

“I think a little fresh air wouldn’t hurt,” Tifa said. “Besides, the weather is quite warm tonight - summer is coming after all.”

“Alright then,” Rufus said. “But you’re going straight to bed after this.”

Seeing that Sui’s IV drip bag needed a change as well, he switched off the infusion pump and carefully unfastened the clamps that connected the tubes to the IV plug.

“The needle is still inside your wrist, so be careful not to move your hand too much, okay?”

Sui nodded. And then, Rufus wrapped the little girl in her blanket and carried her in his arms.

“You’re like a baby right now, you know.” Rufus commented.

“Am I troublesome?” Sui asked.

Rufus shook his head and smiled. “It’s fine, my dear. You’re still a little girl after all.”

The two then took the elevator to go back up, followed by Tifa and Dark Nation. Before they leave the lodge, Rufus told Tseng to get the nurses replace the IV drip bag and have it prepared in Sui’s bedroom.   
  


Escorted by Dark Nation, they walked together under the stars. Tifa was right - the weather was warm that night. However, Rufus wouldn’t let Sui remove her blanket. As she settled comfortably in her father’s arms, she gazed at the stars in the sky quietly.

Night time at Healen was quiet - it was only them, the sound of footsteps, and the nocturnal little creatures singing along with the sound of water from the river. 

“Who was the woman in that song, though?” Tifa asked, breaking the silence. 

“Why are you so curious about it?” he asked back. 

“Well…it’s just that…I felt some sort of connection with it. With the song and…the lady in in the story that you told your daughter.”

“I can make _‘Tifa’s Theme’_ the official title of the song, if you like.”

Tifa’s eyes widened. “That’s-“

Again, Rufus chuckled. This time, Tifa realized quickly that he’s just teasing her.

“Would you stop teasing me like that in front of your daughter?” 

Rufus sighed. “Perhaps you felt related to the woman in the song simply because you have a similar situation to hers - why? Is it because you always repress your happiness for the sake of others, or are you waiting for happiness from someone who wouldn’t give it to you?”

This time, Tifa silenced.

“Well, you don’t have to say anything to me, Miss Lockhart. You can keep your answers to yourself.”

The walk then continued in silence, with Rufus focusing on Sui. Meanwhile, Tifa was busy with her own thoughts. Deep down, she already knew exactly the answers to the president’s questions. But to admit them, even within her own mind…it was difficult to do.

Trying to clear out her thoughts, her attention immediately shifted towards Rufus. She didn’t know when it happened, but he have stopped becoming such an intimidating figure in her eyes; in that moment, all that she see was… a father to his little girl. A man who was seeking for redemption through may ways.

And somehow, she still couldn’t fully accept it.

Despite the newfound respect towards the man, she couldn’t help but feel jealous. How on earth did a man with so many sins in the past is blessed with a biological child? Did he even have any idea what his company did to her? How many have suffered permanent consequences like her? It's that she thinks Marlene and Denzel are not enough - she truly loved and cared for them, but like Reno have mentioned before; years after years of going through moments where her life is at stake, she sometimes craved that sense of wanting to have someone who shared her blood. To become a mother one day was something that she wanted, long before she left Nibelheim.  
  
And yet…the chance to become a parent is given to this undeserving man, who probably never wanted a child to begin with.

“I think we should go back now,” Rufus said, breaking the silence between them. “Sui is finally asleep.”

Tifa’s anger diminished the moment Rufus turned around towards her, showing Sui’s peaceful sleeping face. The little girl looked so perfect, like an angel doll made of porcelain. Despite the blame Shinra has received, Rufus is still one of the most wanted bachelor in Gaia; of course there’s no way that his biological offsprings would look just ordinary. Even if his partner isn’t an extraordinary beauty, surely the Shinra genetics will take over; no matter how she tried to find the resemblance, the little girl’s doesn’t have a trace of Wutaian traits at all.

_This girl did nothing wrong._

_And her father is trying his best to walk the path of redemption._

_I should really learn how to forgive._

She then reached out her hand towards Sui, gently brushing her cheeks. “Get well soon, Sui.” she whispered.

Sui shifted a little, turning her head towards her father’s chest. She mumbled a little, which brought a little smile to Rufus and Tifa.

_“Mama…”_

Until that came out of her mouth.

Their eyes widened, and they instantly turned to each other. Both have so many things to say, but nothing came out of their mouths;

“I-I’m really sorry about that…” Rufus stuttered.

“It's okay. it's okay! It’s not your fault!” Tifa hastily replied. “She must be dreaming about her mom - that’s why! She told me many stories about her mom…she sounds like a lovely, caring woman…”

Hearing that, the president’s gaze instantly fell towards his little girl; for the first time, Tifa saw his eyes drowning in sadness up close.

“I…I’m sorry. Should I not mention anything about her?”

Rufus shook his head. “It’s okay.”

“Do you…miss her too?”

The president looked up. “Miss Lockhart, my relationship with Sui’s mother isn’t like what you thought.”

Tifa was taken aback by his reaction - rather than sad, he sound quite upset and annoyed. “Huh?”

“...I promise that I will tell you everything soon, when I’m ready. For now, let’s just head back for the lodge.”

And then, the rest of the walk back to the lodge were spent in silence. Rufus kept his pace slow as he tried not to wake his little girl, while Tifa was left in utter confusion of Rufus’ behavior. Just…what was his relationship like with Sui’s mother? Did he not love her and felt guilty?

But then, she recalled the moment Sui said _“Mama”._

Even though it wasn’t intended for her, it was enough to make her happy. 

Perhaps that’s the closest she can be as a mother - other than towards Marlene and Denzel.

—-

And then, the two tucked the little girl back to bed, along with the medical team that has been waiting for her. The nurses adjusted her IV drips before draping the duvet over her body, and Rufus kissed her goodnight.

“Thank you for everything, Miss Lockhart.” Rufus said. “Please don’t hesitate to contact me whenever you need assistance.”

“The feeling is mutual, Mr. Shinra.” Tifa said.

“Now then, shall I arrange for your transportation back to Seventh Heaven or would you like to stay in one of our guest rooms until morning?”

“I, uh...I should head back…Cloud and the kids will be worried if I'm not back before sunrise.”

“Alright then,” Rufus said, turning to Tseng. “Make sure she returns home safely.”

“This way, Miss Lockhart.” Tseng said. “Reno and Rude is ready to take you back to Edge.”

“Please call me again if Sui needs me…and tell me if something happens to her.” Tifa said.

Rufus nodded. “I will.”   
  


And then, the two bid their farewell for the night. Rufus escorted her back to the porch, and stood there until the car that was driven by Reno and Rude drove off the property.

“Have you told tell her the truth, _shachou?”_ Tseng asked.

Rufus sighed.“No.”

“Why?”

“I prefer to tell everything when Strife and the others are here...to prevent any further misunderstandings in the future.”

“I understand.” Tseng said.

The two then returned inside the lodge.  
  
Rufus immediately headed to Sui’s bedroom, intending to accompany her again for the night. However, seeing that she now sleeps much calmer than previous nights, Rufus decided that it should be okay for him to sleep on his bed tonight; all that night sleeping in weird, makeshift positions have made his back pretty stiff.

“Hey buddy - watch her tonight, will you?” he told Dark Nation.

The military dog turned to his master, and obediently stepped into the girl’s bedroom and curled on the carpet, next to the bed.  
  


And then, Rufus went to his bedroom to finally earn a nice, proper sleep for himself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally - another update! First thing first, I never intend the story to be Rufus/Tifa centric; although it is one of the pairings I'm fond of in FF7 (and I have a Rufus/Tifa story going on too right now) the original outline I've written for the fic is not centric towards any pairing. Still, this might change in the future as the story grows. 
> 
> So...should I keep the fic neutral of any pairings or should I incorporate Rufus/Tifa in the future? (since the pairing have very little number of fics here) let me know in the comments!


	5. Even the Most Precious Gem would Never Become Everyone's Favorite

It’s been three weeks since Sui finally recovered. Both Sui and Rufus have returned to their daily activities, but they haven’t permitted her to resume her afternoon visits in the city again; other than the outbreak clearance at the local school was still under progress by the WRO, doctors at Healen Lodge have advised that they change her afternoon activities to physical training for the time being. Before, she only had physical training twice a week.

Rude and Elena were mainly the ones who are in charge of her training; rather than just normal exercises for children, she also practice hand-to-hand and weapon combats.

Yes, she was physically weak before she came to Midgar, however, she often quietly observed the activities in her grandfather’s martial arts dojo back when it was still open. After she was healed, she began to practice them as how she remembered them. Rufus saw her talent and interest in martial arts and combat weapon usage, and asked the Turks to personally observe her training.

“She is amazing, and yet terrifying at the same time.” Elena murmured as she observed Sui beating up a dummy bot. “A normal child wouldn’t be able to do such movements.”

“Her basic genes did come from competent fighters.” Rude commented. “And also, she was…born to protect her father after all.”

Elena sighed. Rude didn’t say the last sentence out of any sentiment either; it was simply a fact.

While Sui haven’t returned to the city, she is allowed to contact Denzel and Marlene every day; they would chat through video calls every day via Tifa’s cellphone. The two kids remained healthy, as WRO quickly distributed immune booster vitamins, set up an emergency clinic near the school area in order to keep the outbreak minimum, and ordered mass disinfection within the school area. Number of infection cases quickly lowered, and people praised the WRO without knowing that it was Shinra’s money and resources behind that.

And of course, Sui knew none of that; all that she knew was her daddy told Uncle Reeve to do what’s necessary so that no more kids in the city would get sick.

She’s been asking every day on when she could go play in the city again, as there were no other kids at Healen. Reno, the Turk she’s the closest with, is often busy for missions these days, while her daddy is often out for work until late. Elena and Rude would only be with her just for training, while Tseng only appears at the end of the day to check on her before she went to sleep. She would spend her days with her tutor and her nannies. They are kind, and the toys she was given to play with were all fun; however, she missed her daddy.

Although her nanny said that her daddy would come and see her before he’s gone into his own bedroom every night, she could not believe it. She tried waiting for him several times, only to fall asleep and wake up in the morning to see him gone.

And so, on one afternoon when he’s home early from a trip, Rufus had already expected Sui to come running to him and give him a hug like always, but she remain seated on the living room sofa and soon her eyes reverted back to her portable console - she’s playing a game about a cake shop with twinkly, high-pitched sound effects every time she scored something.

 _That’s odd,_ Rufus thought.

“I’m home,” he announced once more.

“I know.”

Rufus twitched one of his eyebrows. _What on earth happened to her manners?_ he thought, _I thought that her tutor have taught her strictly enough?_

“Are you okay?” he asked.

She turned to him and nodded. “Yeah, I’m okay. The doctors said so in the morning.”

Rufus sighed in relief. _Right, she’s not falling sick again. If she did, the medical team would’ve informed me earlier._

“How long are you going to stand there, daddy?”

Rufus blanked.

“You’re about to leave again, aren’t you? Shouldn’t you hurry? Tseng would be calling you any minute now.”

“Huh?“

“ _Shachou_ is already done for the day, Miss Sui.” Elena said. “He’s not going anywhere.”

Sui then switched off her game console, slid down the sofa, and then performed a curtsy. “Then I shall be excused,” she said. “I’ll go to my room and play inside quietly. I won’t bother you until dinner, daddy.”

“What?”

“Well, you’re going to continue working in your office again, right? I shall not disturb you.”

“But Sui-“

Sui have already left to her bedroom, bringing her video game console with her.

“…Is she upset with me?” Rufus asked.

Elena shook her head. “I don’t think so…however, let me check on something.”

She then grabbed her tablet, and opened up what appear to be schedule timetables.

“…I thought so.”

“What is it?” Rufus asked.

“These schedules belongs to you and Miss Sui, sir. According to this schedule, you haven’t spent time together for the past three weeks. You’ve only had dinner together once, and breakfast together twice. You’ve been working late, and going on business trips that took several days, while Miss Sui remained home as you briefed so.”

“Had Reeve informed us about the current outbreak status?”

“There have been no new reported cases amongst children in the district since one week ago. School disinfection protocol is already complete, so regular activities should resume normally on Monday. However, WRO emergency clinics are still running because the number of patients remain high, mostly amongst adults and elders in the area with various health problems.”

“Then there is demand for a health facility in the area. Please secure a building in the area for the clinic to be built permanently and inform WRO.”

“Right away, sir.” Elena said, tapping the keypad on her tablet to set a reminder. “Is there anything else?”

"Anything on my schedule tomorrow?”

“There is an invitation for a gala dinner at the New Loveless Avenue in the evening from Lady Corvinus, however…it says here that Miss Sui Shinra is also invited, since the gala dinner is apparently a family friendly event and the attendees are encouraged to bring their children too. I should make a mention that the invite list that includes your name and hers are available to access by everyone who is invited.”

Rufus’ eyes widened. 

“This gala dinner happened to be one of the many fundraising events that Sir and Lady Corvinus have arranged for your hospital project building, sir. So…both of your names are publicly listed.”

“…I need to make a phone call.”

Rufus then entered his home office (as Sui have predicted earlier) and grabbed his cellphone, angrily dialling his aunt to demand some explanation on why did she include Sui in her gala dinner invitation listing.

“Apparently, some business media journalists managed to leak the info that you were the main backer of the children hospital project that my husband and I were fundraising for,” Lady Corvinus said, “While many were aware of our extended family relationship and assured that my husband and I would never back questionable charities, some fundraisers were unconvinced; they were afraid that this hospital may be a secret Shinra facility that aimed sick and poor children to be taken as experimentation subject.”

Rufus sighed. “Old reputation dies hard.”

“And thus, I’m hoping that with your appearance in the gala dinner along with your daughter, you will give reassurance to my fundraisers that were doubting about your intentions of building a children’s hospital.”

“But Aunt Eleanor, I-“

“I understand that you wanted to keep the public eye away from her as long as possible, Rufus; however…like it or not, she is born as a Shinra. You can’t hide her forever. Eventually, you’ll have to raise her as your heiress.”

Rufus sighed. Yes, he intended to build that hospital for Sui; he didn’t plan for them to stay in Healen Lodge forever; eventually, he wants Sui to be healthy enough for them to move in together to their new home in Edge, and for Sui to have an accessible healthcare facility if she ever needed it.

However, in order for that hospital to work in a long term, he needs to run it as a public business as well; as much as he’s raised around what most people would say unlimited amount of wealth, he didn’t study in the most prestigious business school in Junon just to spend his money recklessly like his father did; but how to effectively make more as well so that when it’s time to pass everything to his heir - Sui, apparently - hopefully, she would be able to live comfortably, without the public judgment that he has to endure right now.

“Right; well.. _maybe_ I will bring Sui to the gala dinner. Maybe. I need time for this…”

“Rufus, you’ve already had more than enough time.”

“I know, Aunt Eleanor…I know. I just…Having to use an innocent child to fix my own company’s reputation like this feels really repulsive, you know. I do intend to build that hospital for her sake, and yet…I’m not ready when she finds out that the world would hate her because of what my father did in the past - what _I_ did in the past-“

“Like it or not, Rufus…she was part of that too; Shinra’s past mistake, that is. And whether she’s born a Shinra or not, there would be people who dislike her; people who would betray her; she needs to learn that sooner or later.”

And he couldn’t deny what she said anymore.

“I’ll…tell one of my Turks to reconfirm with you about _our_ attendance to the gala dinner, then.”

“All right then. Oh, one more thing…”

“What is it, Aunt Eleanor?”

“You’ve already proven more than enough that you are a different man than your father at this point. Don’t be too hard on yourself.” 

Rufus then stepped out of his office and told Elena to make sure that his schedule will be empty and undisturbed starting from this evening until the end of the gala dinner, while he went towards Sui’s room and hurriedly knocked on the door. 

When Sui opened the door, Rufus immediately wrapped her in a hug. She repeatedly asked him why, but he didn’t say anything; he wouldn’t let go of her either even though she’s clearly suffocating.

“Sui, we’re going out tomorrow.” Rufus said.

“Are we going to meet an important person again?”

Rufus shook his head. “No. We’re going out to the city. Just you and me.”

Sui beamed. “Really?”

Rufus nodded. “I thought I’ve given everything that you’ve wanted, but it turns out that I haven’t been listening really well to what you really want.”

Sui couldn’t hold her excitement - she hugged her father and kissed his cheek, telling him how much she loved him and how she’s looking forward to go out to the city again after so long.

The Turks watched the scene quietly from afar. They have seen the many faces of their _shachou_ that he never showed to the public, but for the first time ever, he showed a smile that looked somewhat _painful._

“Yo, Elena! What was it that you said back then to him? _…’To love is to let go’_ \- right?” Reno asked.

Elena nodded. “Yeah. He’s…definitely letting go right now. A lot.”

“Is he bringing her to the gala dinner tomorrow?” Rude asked.

“Seems like he had no choice…” Elena sulked.

“I guess we better make some preparations,” Tseng said. “Tomorrow will be a long day.”

—-

That night, Rufus let Sui climb onto his bed and watch late night movies again with Dark Nation lying on the edge of the bed. This time, they’re watching a movie about a little girl who was sent to a boarding school as her father went to serve in the world war, and suddenly her father was declared dead, and the little girl was turned into a maid by the evil headmistress.

Finding the movie amusing, he then told Sui how he also attended a boarding school in Junon back when he was much younger - the difference was that it was a boys only school, and the school was much bigger too. There might be teachers that were scary like the evil headmistress, but they surely wouldn’t turn a student into a servant if someone’s father died during their time at school.Instead, they will hold a mourning ceremony and let the student go home to attend the funeral, and whether the student returns to school or not afterwards depends on each family’s decisions.

“What if it happens to you, daddy? What will happen to me if you die all of a sudden?”

Rufus was taken aback by the question.

“I-I'll try my best not to let that happen-“

“But you’ll never know what will happen tomorrow!”

Rufus took a deep breath, and began to answer to her question. “Reeve and the Turks will take care of you and keep you safe, until you’re old enough to be my successor.”

“…Will I be okay without you?”

“They’ve been taking care of me since I was very young, my dear. I trust my life to them. I’m sure that you’ll be okay. You’re a strong girl.”

Sui then snuggled herself closer towards her daddy’s chest. “I prefer you not to die, daddy. I want to be with you.”

The _shachou_ sighed, and wrapped her in a hug. “I will do my best to stay alive as long as possible, and I wish the same for you too.”

 _They said that children could be the source of your strength - perhaps this is what they meant,_ Rufus thought.

Thoughts to end his life sometimes crossed his mind, but never to the point that he would consider himself depressed or traumatized. He’s far too ambitious and stubborn to let himself fall into it.

He did have the thoughts of giving up when he was fighting off the pain of the injuries he sustained after he was blasted off the top floor of Shinra Building back in Midgar, and catching Geostigma soon after - there were days where he thought that he was done for. But again, he managed to survive, thanks to the efforts of those who still have trust in him, or perhaps the lifestream just condemned him somehow - they're probably unwilling to accept him. 

And now, to hear the words that someone sincerely wanted him to stay alive not because they serve a certain profitable purpose, was something that gave him a newfound strength and a feeling that he could not describe. He wasn’t used to it, for sure -the thing that he heard the most since he was young were wishes for him to perish and die; and most of the people around him that he trusted with his life, were the ones that goes by a payroll from his pockets.

“So…daddy, what are we going to do tomorrow?” Sui asked.

“Let’s see…” Rufus said, shifting himself to lie down on his back. “We’ll go around the shopping district, find some nice clothes and toys for you…visit Seventh Heaven for lunch, and then we’ll go to the park for a bit before we go to the New Loveless Avenue to find a nice dress for you, get your hair and nails done, and then we’ll go to Aunt Eleanor’s party.”

“Party?”

“Yes - you’ll meet other kids of people who work with me as well. They are important people, of course, but Aunt Eleanor wanted us to enjoy ourselves tomorrow - so don’t think of it as another formal meeting like when I took you to meet Uncle Reeve or Aunt Eleanor for the first time.”

“Why aren’t you reminding me to be on my best behavior, like Tseng would always tell me before I’m meeting important people?”

Rufus smiled and gently stroked Sui’s cheek “Because I already believe that you’ll behave well tomorrow, my dear.”

Sui smiled. And then, she was about to lie down with her father again when she noticed Dark Nation rolling on the bed, exposing his belly.

“Can we bring Dark Nation when we go around the city tomorrow? I might meet my friends at the park tomorrow, and I always told them that I have a big and strong guard dog at home! They want to meet Dark Nation!”

“He’s a fierce-looking military mutt, my dear. You sure people won’t be scared of him?”

“We can put on one of my hair bows to make him look cute and friendly,” she suggested.

The _shachou_ couldn’t hold back his laughter at that suggestion.“Well, I don’t think that’s a bad idea. Besides, we’re not going to walk around with the Turks near us tomorrow, so I guess it’ll be much safer with him around. We’lljust ask Rude and Reno to pick him up and get him home when we’re about to get ready to go to the party.”

And then, they immediately fall asleep after the movie was finished.

—-

Rufus and Sui were finally ready to go out by ten o’clock; she’s wearing a white tank-top with letters in random fonts and sizes that says “love and peace” in black written all over it, a black short jeans, and a small designer white clutch bag that shaped like a seashell with a shoulder strap, along with a pair of white mini-strapped heels. Elena helped her choose her outfits, and for today, she also choose to wear a pearl necklace that belonged to her mother - in which the size have been readjusted for Sui.

After she was finished, Sui walked out of her room with Elena, only to be met with an unexpected sight; her father, for the first time in forever, walked out of his bedroom clad in casual clothing - a short-sleeved unbuttoned black polo shirt and a white knee-length pants, along with a pair of casual black slip-in loafers, a smartwatch, and a black leather crossbody bag. A pair of sunglasses hung around his unbuttoned collar - which he will wear later when he drives out.

“Ready?” Rufus asked.

Sui nodded. “Just one more thing!”

She then grabbed the white hair bow with pink polka-dots from Elena’s hands - one of her favorite pairs that she personally chooses to lend to Dark Nation today - and tied it around the military mutt’s neck; it surely didn’t change the fact that the dog still looked very intimidating - but with his spiky collar removed and replaced with a normal looking collar below the girly bow, the dog looked…”Slightly less intimidating, however…still looked far from a normal family dog.” Reno commented.

Sui didn’t mind; she hugged Dark Nation and gushed how cute he is with her bow, and the mutt wagged his tail.

“I guess she’s fine with this.” Rude shrugged.

“Whatever floats her boat,” Reno added.  
  


When they walked out of the lodge, they hopped onto a convertible car that Rufus had asked to be prepared earlier, with Sui riding gunshot. The safety measures have been specially designed so that it’s safe for Sui to sit next to the driver, while Dark Nation made himself comfortable on the back seat.

“We’ll keep our eyes on you from a distance, _shachou._ Enjoy the day.” Tseng said, as Rufus adjusted his seatbelt and put on his sunglasses.

“Thank you.” Rufus commented. “Remember, in case anything happens, please prioritize Sui’s safety”

“Understood,” Tseng nodded. “You sure you won’t need to bring any personal weapons today?”

Rufus shook his head. “Right now, we are a normal father and daughter enjoying the weekend.”

“Right…” Tseng sighed. _Well, Dark Nation himself is a more than adequate weapon already,_ he thought.

And then, they drove out of the Healen Lodge area, out to the roads that will take them to Edge.

—-

As Rufus drove past the borders of the city, Sui found herself enjoying the breeze, along with Dark Nation. This is the first time she’s riding in a convertible car, with her daddy driving on his own - usually, she would use the limousine or a sedan, and she would sit at the back while someone else would be driving. When she’s in the car with her daddy, he would be busy talking on the phone or working on something on his tablet. He would only talk to her to tell her where they’re going and what she should do, while she would only observe the scenery outside through a glass window when he’s busy, or play a game on her portable console.

Today, she can feel the sunlight, the wind, and hear the noises of the city that would usually be disconnected from her by the bulletproof-armored layers of the car.

Meanwhile, Rufus remained quiet. The car radio played some light instrumental jazz music on a low volume, as he needed some music to help him pay attention to the road. It’s definitely been a while since he drive on his own, and yet he didn’t want to bring too much attention to other drivers or people in the street; they’re trying to blend in as much as possible anyway. However, people were already paying attention to them ever since he drove into the city roads, especially when they stopped for the traffic light; not because they already realized who he is, but the fact that he’s riding on a state-of-the-art convertible sedan with a particular engine purr that already screamed luxury from a distance, and also the big scary-looking dog at the backseat, were making people turning their heads. He couldn’t really hear what people were whispering in the streets, and Rufus wasn’t really in the mood to find out either. Sui though, she doesn’t seem to pay attention to what’s happening around her at all; she’s too happy when butterflies approached her face (must be from the flower-scented perfume that Elena choose for her), and she tried to catch them. Rufus was so amused at her laughing face that he took his phone to snap photos - he got a shot where one of the butterfles landed on the tip of her nose.

The traffic light turned green, and then Rufus placed his phone back onto its dock and drove off again. He took a turn towards the main street of the city where there was a giant monument stood in the middle of it.

“What is that big thing, daddy?”

“It’s the meteor monument, Sui.”

“Who built it?”

“I did.”

“What for?”

“To commemorate an incident where the planet almost ended.”

“The planet almost ended? When?”

“…I don’t think you remember that, Sui. You were still in Wutai back then, and you were very sick - they probably kept you in bed most of the time. Most of the incident happened in Midgar. I’ll tell you more about it when you’re older.”

Sui knew that her father only said the last sentence to end the conversation quickly. She knows not to press, as she doesn’t want to make her daddy upset on a rare occasion like today.

Meanwhile, Rufus was glad that Sui didn’t ask anything more; he never liked to recall those struggling times - like when he was blasted off by the weapon and struggled with Geostigma. He knew that he would’ve been dead in the rubbles of the old Shinra Company building, if it wasn’t for his father - whohave prepared a ‘gift’ for a loser.

However, he doesn’t feel like a complete loser at all these days; not ever since he discovered Sui and continued to prove himself that he is a different man than his father. He's glad that he chooses to live. 

Rufus parked the car in front of a building that has Shinra company logo, and closed all the hatches before he left the building area with his daughter and his dog. Holding her hand with one hand while holding the dog’s leash with his other hand, the three of them began to stroll around the city.

They went to various places; the toy store, the pet shop, clothing stores, and more. There were times where Dark Nation had to wait outside by the storefront, but in most of the stores where Rufus happened to know the owners, he can come in with them. They were baffled at how the Turks were nowhere to be seen today - only to be told that he’s only with his daughter that day - which would always draw surprised faces.

When they visited the jewelry store, the storeowner who happened to be present during the day joked that this little girl he brought with him might be a new Turk recruit. Rufus just chuckled at the irony, knowing that she’s probably as capable as one of them by now.

“No, she’s my daughter.” Rufus simply said. Again, more shocked faces - he wasn’t surprised by that at all by now.

“I thought you’re babysitting your niece or something! She does really look like you, though.”

When asked where she’s been all these years, why shewas never seen in the media, he simply said that she’s been living with her mother in Wutai - which was the truth. He explained that he only brought her to Midgar recently, because she needed the health facilities in Healen Lodge.

Meanwhile, Sui was looking at a bunch of flower-shaped jewelries. Her daddy said that she can pick whatever she liked to wear to the party tonight. But little did he know that she’s been observing her father’s behavior all day; he’s usually very secretive and private about her, always making sure that there were no camping journalists and the Turks would cover her body whenever she walked outdoors, or how she’s not allowed to say her family name or even her real name at all sometimes, and she’s never allowed to say who her daddy is. But today is different; her father seemed to be okay with introducing her as his daughter to everyone. He does warn her not to talk to anyone outside the stores except if he gives it an ok, and he only took off his sunglasses in select stores. However, it's very unusual of him to be this…open.

 _I wonder what’s happening with daddy today?_ she wondered.

“Do you like that one, my dear?”

Sui was startled upon realizing that her father’s been behind her up close, looking at her staring at one piece of jewelry; a piece of necklace shaped like a rose glazed in deep blue color, while its edges and leaves were made out of gold and tiny diamond studs.

“Oh, as expected from Rufus Shinra’s little girl; she already have a great taste!” the storeowner exclaimed, “But isn’t the model too mature for you, sweetheart?”

“I agree,” Rufus said. “It looks beautiful, but it’s not something that you can wear yet; perhaps you can pick another?”

Sui shook her head. “This isn’t for me, daddy.” she said, “I was thinking of giving this to Tifa!”

Rufus’ eyes widened.

“Sui, I don’t think she’ll want to receive something like this.”

“But it’s pretty! I think it suits her, don’t you think so too?”

“Yes, I think so too, my dear; however, she wouldn’t want to receive something like this from me.”

“Don’t worry, daddy! I’ll give this to her and say that this is from me! Besides, I just wanted to thank her for taking care of me when I was sick!”

Rufus couldn’t say anything else, and he just quieted when his little girl talk to the storeowner to get it wrapped in a nice gift box.

Later on, after they finally choose some jewelry set for Sui, Rufus shelled out his credit card to pay for everything.

“So who is this ‘Tifa’ girl, huh?” the storeowner asked at the register, grinning at the _shachou._

“No one,” Rufus scoffed. “Now hurry up and finish the transaction, I have an appointment for lunch.”

“Oh come on, you’re not going to tell an old friend? If she’s really ‘no one’ like you said, why would you be so on edge just to give her a thank you gift? Your daughter seemed to really like that lady for whatever reason…”

Rufus sighed. “She’s…the foster mother of her playmates in the shopping district - I guess that’s how you put it. She helped me took care of Sui when she fell sick last time, that’s why she wanted to thank her. That’s all.”

“Really? Nothing else?”

“She’s currently living together with another man - they’ve been together since the meteorfall aftermath.”

“Oh,”

And then, the storeowner completely dropped the subject and finished the transaction. He passed the shopping bag to Rufus’ hands, and told him to come by again anytime with his little girl.

“Don’t get your hopes up; I’m trying not to spoil her too much here.”

The storeowner laughed, “Judging by your first visit, I think you’re going to come back here so often to buy her something; especially when she owns her own credit card!”

“I’m not going to give her one until she’s old enough.”

“Well, that’s when they’re going to spend daddy’s money for one of these sparkly stones I sell, you know?”

Rufus groaned, and bid the storeowner farewell. And then, they headed back towards the building where they parked their car to put their shopping into the trunk.

“Who was that storeowner, daddy?”

“An old friend from my school back in Junon - he was my junior in my dormitory,” Rufus answered. “Why?”

“You sure talk to him a lot.”

“Really?”

“Mm-hm, you don’t talk as much to the other managers and storeowners at those other stores we visited before.”

Rufus smiled and stroked his little girl’s head. _She’s more observant than I thought. Perhaps I should be a little bit more careful around her._

And then, the three of them jumped back into the car and drove towards the shopping district. They will park at Reno’s regular spot, where it’s much nearer to Seventh Heaven than this district. This time, Rufus left the car’s roof retracted as he drove.

“Remember, Sui; don’t mention my name or our family’s name when we’re in this district - except to Tifa and the people at Seventh Heaven who personally knows who I am.”

“Understood,” Sui said. _The usual rule,_ she thought. _Is it only applicable when we go to the shopping district? Why?_

As much as she wanted answers, she knows not to ask. Especially not on this particular day; because sometimes when she became too curious and ask too many questions, her father would look sad and upset, and she doesn’t want that.

When they finally arrived, the three of them quickly got out of the car. This time, Rufus wore a black cap over his head along with the sunglasses.

Sui insisted that she hold Dark Nation’s leash this time, and Rufus let her. They ended up garnering a lot of attention; a tiny little girl with a big dog that despite of its odd, fierce look, behaved so well and patiently matches his pace with the little girl. Some of the people there knew Sui already, and sometimes they would greet her.

“Sui- _chan!_ Long time no see! Heading to Seventh Heaven?”

“Oh, hello there Sui! My, what a big dog you have there! Where have you been? It’s been a while since we saw you!”

“Hey Sui! I heard you were sick, are you okay now?”

“Hi there, Sui! Come visit my shop later, okay? I have some sea-salt ice cream for you and Denzel and Marlene!”

Sui greeted them all back politely with a smile. Rufus was amazed; during a short amount of time, his daughter managed to befriend so many people. They all loved her.

 _She looks so happy. Perhaps I should let things stay this way,_ Rufus thought.

_But I can’t. I’m only delaying what was going to be inevitable anyway._

“Sui, who is this man following you?” an old lady asked. “Aren’t you usually with your red-haired cousin or your bald uncle?”

Rufus raised his eyebrow - so that’s the identity they assumed around here.

“Oh, him? That’s my daddy,” Sui said.

Rufus held the brim of his cap and nodded. “Good day, ma’am.”

“Oh my! You’re so young - I thought you might be her older brother or something!” the lady laughed. “Even with all that getup, I can tell that you’re a goodlooking fella! Why hide it behind a cap and a sunglasses?”

Rufus turned his gaze away. “I…I couldn’t stand the scorching heat from the sun. Sorry.”

“Your father is a shy one, isn’t he?” the old lady giggled. “Well, you both run along now! It’s really hot out here during this hour, better get to wherever you’re heading!”

Sui bid the old lady farewell, while Rufus held Sui’s hand and hasted their footsteps.

When they arrived in Seventh Heaven, there was Tifa, Cloud, Denzel, Marlene, and Barret. Rufus took off his cap and sunglasses, and greeted everyone.

He was replied with silence and stunned faces.

“Something the matter?”

“No…it’s just…we never saw you out of your formal clothes.” Tifa said.

“Was it finally too hot for you to wear all those layers of clothing?” Cloud said, which received a glare from Tifa.

Rufus sighed. “I’m just a father going out with his daughter on the weekend today, Strife. Not a corporate boss; I don’t need anything too elaborate for a day out in the city with a child and a dog.”

Meanwhile, the kids were happily greeting the little girl. “I’m so glad you’re healthy again, Sui!” Marlene gushed, hugging her friend. “We missed you sooo much!”

“I missed you and Denzel too!” Sui said.

“Is this the dog you always talk about?” Denzel asked, looking at the military mutt sitting next to Sui. “He looks cool. What’s his name?”

“Dark Nation!” Sui answered.

Denzel twitched one of his eyebrows. “What kind of name is that?”

“I don’t know - it was daddy who named him.”

“I wasn’t much older than Marlene when I received him, Denzel.” Rufus explained. “I think I got his name from a fictional city mentioned in a old comic book I used to have or something.”

“Wow - so he’s actually quite old?”

“Yes - older than you. But he’s still a very competent combat military dog. Perhaps you can ask Strife about it, since they had a battle once.”

Denzel turned to Cloud, who was startled at Rufus’ statement just now. During his few visits to Seventh Heaven with Sui, he rarely mentioned anything about their past battles at all. Although he was a bit on edge when they brought in the big mutt into the shop, the beast-looking dog behaved so well near the kids.

Rufus then asked Tifa for a bowl of fresh water for his dog to drink from, and then he unleashed the dog while he let the dog drink. Meanwhile, Sui was told to help Denzel and Marlene in the kitchen with their roasted beef, while the adults sat together at the bar area for a chat.

“Where are the Turks? Aren’t they coming inside anytime soon?” Tifa asked, pouring a cold sparkling water for the three of them. 

“No - they’re on incognito surveillence today. Like I mentioned before, today I’m just a father taking out his daughter to the city on a weekend. Besides, the presence of the Turks would quickly giveaway who we are immediately.”

Cloud shifted back on his seat, folding his arms. “What’s your intention to your daughter?”

“Cloud!” Tifa groaned.

Rufus sighed and took a sip of his drink. “As expected from an ex-soldier,” he said. “You do read my intentions, huh?”

“What do you mean?” Tifa asked.

“Sui and I will attend a gala dinner tonight, held by one of the largest fundraiser of one of my current project. I will publicly announce to the public that I have a daughter.”

He then explained all the reasons why he had to bring Sui there and why it has to be done now, and was met with disappointed huffs from both Cloud and Barret.

“I can’t say that I agree with your decision, Shinra.” Barret said, “Well, at least you admit that you are using your daughter for your personal gain indeed, but aunt of yours does have a point; you can’t hide her forever like this. Not only you and her, but one day Marlene might meet someone who won’t like her because she’s my daughter, and that’s just inevitable sometimes; life is unfair. Be it you’re born as the kid of an ex-AVALANCHE member or the richest man in the world, someone would just hate you for one reason or another. This is between you and your daughter, Shinra; I won’t interfere. However, once that the news that she’s your daughter is out in the public…I don’t think she’ll be able to hang around here anymore.”

“Yes, I know that already,” Rufus said. “In which I planned to invite Denzel and Marlene to meet Sui privately from time to time instead - including for that summer vacation plan in Healen.”

“Yes, we might be able to go in a week or so,” Tifa said. “But…wouldn’t sending the kids to Healen every afternoon be a hassle? I know that you are more than able to arrange transportation for them, but unlike Sui, both Denzel and Marlene attends regular school. I wouldn’t want them to be too tired to go to school the next day.”

“No need to worry, Miss Lockhart. Should everything go according to plan, we might be able to relocate to our new mansion in Edge by the end of summer.”

“That’s convenient,” Cloud remarked.

And then, the kids announced that the food is ready. The adults then got up to help settle the dining table, however, much to everyone’s surprise, Rufus asked everyone to sit down while he took over. He then set the table nicely like a fancy restaurant, poured drinks for everyone, and plated the food so fancy that made Barret almost hesitant to eat it until he remembered that it’s still Marlene’s cooking.

“Damn, I didn’t know you can set up the dining table like some professional fancy restaurant waiter!” Barret remarked. “Don’t tell me you had a secret part-time work in some restaurant before?”

Rufus chuckled, “Oh no, this was part of my curriculum back in school. Back then, every student is on scheduled to serve our schoolmates every dinner at least once a month; we also learned about serving, food plating, and dining table setting in home economics classes.”

“Why’d you have to learn all that? I thought you fancy people just leave it all to the servants!”

“Let’s say that if we, the employers, didn’t know how to do it properly, how do we know that our employees have done the right thing? Hence why we must know how to serve before we receive service.”

“True enough,” Barret nodded. “I guess you ain’t really that much of a spoiled brat, huh? No wonder your kid turned out pretty fine - nah, she’s even better than you!”

“I agree,” Cloud added.

Tifa was annoyed, but Rufus just laughed along.

_Well, that’s the truth after all. She’s a better human than me through and through._

Since the portion was quite large, Rufus asked whether it’s okay to share some of the roasted beef with Dark Nation. And then, he grabbed another empty bowl that Tifa said he could use, and sloshed a portion of roasted beef in it and gave it to the dog.

And then, he finally sat down and began to eat with everyone else.

After they finished the meal, the kids begged to go outside - they wanted to play with Dark Nation in the park. It’s Tifa’s turn to do the dishes, and Cloud offered to help her; so then, Rufus and Barret decided to accompany the children out. The _shachou_ put his cap and sunglasses back on, and put Dark Nation on his leash before he stepped outside and joined the the children.

The park was crowded with children; it’s afternoon playtime for the kids in the district, and Sui’s return was heartily greeted by everyone. When Barret and Rufus went closer with Dark Nation, the kids’ attention instantly turned their heads.

Some kids went to get a closer look of the unusual-looking dog, while some backed away in fear.

“Dark Nation!”

Hearing the little girl cried his name cheerfully, the dog barked and wagged its tail. Rufus hastened his pace as the dog wanted to run to Sui, while the little girl ran to approach them.

Sui then gave the dog a hug, and the kids were left in awe.

“This…this is the big dog that you always talk about?” a boy asked.

Sui nodded “Yes! His name is Dark Nation!”

“That’s a weird name,” a girl commented.

“It was my daddy who named him!”

“Why does he look so scary like a monster? His eyes are all red.”

“That’s because he’s a special military dog! His job is to protect me and my daddy!”

More and more kids approached them with enthusiastic questions, while the dog remained docile. He helped her explain about Dark Nation at first, but soon he realized that she can handle this on her own. So then, he gave the leash to Sui and let the kids play on their own as he joined Barret on the bench.

“Is it always like this every afternoon?” Rufus asked.

“Huh?”

“Sui - did she always draw so much attention when she’s here during afternoons?”

“As far as I know, yes - I’m not always in town, y’see; but from the stories I hear from my daughter, your little girl is a favorite amongst the people here - she’s a goodlookin’ girl - takes after ya; and she’s just a magnet to people with the way she talks! I guess that probably takes after her mom because I tell ya, you kept on pissin’ people whenever you open your mouth for a speech!”

Barret laughed out loud as he tapped on Rufus’ back, making him cough as he laughed along.

“Sorry ‘bout that, am I too hard on ya?”

Rufus waved it off “Nothing that I couldn’t take,” he said. Just in time, Tifa and Cloud came out of the bar carrying a a few cans of drinks in different flavors.

“Anything you like? Or would you prefer some water instead?” Tifa asked. Rufus quickly picked out a can of lemonade and thanked her. Tifa gave a small smile, amused to see that he picked out the same drink like Sui.

Meanwhile, Cloud hollered at the kids and tell them to pick out a drink, and they soon crowded him - Sui included. She was about to pick her usual lemonade when all of a sudden, she turned around and put her hand up, as if she was ready to catch something. However, Dark Nation was already in front of her and casted a barrier spell for her and the other kids. Cloud wondered what happened, but then he noticed the metal-shaped ball that Sui used for her weapon lying on the ground. The little girl didn’t seem to carry it today, neither does her father.

It didn’t took long for Cloud to notice a few suspicious-looking men appearing from the alleyways; one of them was holding a slingshot-gun similar like Sui’s. He immediately told the kids to go away, while Barret and Tifa ran towards Cloud. Rufus was about to join them, but Barret told him to stay back and watch the kids instead. Rufus called Sui and Dark Nation to his side, taking Denzel and Marlene with them. Rufus told Dark Nation to cast another barrier as he unleashed the dog, while he pressed the emergency button on his smartwatch to call the Turks.

_…wait, where are the Turks? They should’ve been able to take care of these thugs way before they come here!_

“What the hell do you want?” Cloud asked.

“Nothing to do with ex-AVALANCHE members,” one of the thugs said, “We just need that particular blonde little girl to come with us.”

Tifa stepped forward as she put on her gloves. “I can’t allow that. All of you need to leave!”

“Move aside, woman! We have no business with you!”

The thug slapped Tifa’s face so hard that she instantly fell. Cloud was there to catch her before she touches the ground, but when he looked up, the thug was already falling to the ground - Sui landed a flying kick on his face.

“SUI!”

All the orders for Sui to back down were ignored by her; she began taking down the thugs with her bare hands, and Cloud, Tifa, and Barret had no choice but to back her up.

Meanwhile, Rufus still tried to contact his Turks as he and Dark Nation escorted the kids into Seventh Heaven for safety. Once he bolted the door close and got Marlene to close the back door and windows, he took out his phone out of his pocket and tried to track down where his Turks are.

None answered his call, and yet their trackers were showing that they’re still active and on their stand by positions. Meanwhile he kept looking out the window every few seconds to check on Sui; she’s fighting well alongside the ex-AVALANCHE members, and he knows that she’s more than capable of defending herself, but he couldn’t help but worry.

_There’s no signal jam right now - and yet the Turks were uncontactable. What the hell is happening? Sui is still out there - should I go and grab her? But I have no weapon at hand. Should I get Dark Nation out? But in case those thugs get in, I can’t protect the kids. What should I do-_

“Uncle! I see some people coming closer from the back door!” Marlene cried from the window.

Rufus quickly approached her and as she moved aside, he took a peek. She was right - more thugs were coming and they’re ready to crash through.

“Denzel, do you know where the weapons are stored in this place?”

“There are plenty of Cloud’s spare swords in his office upstairs.”

“Please take me there,” he said.

After he told Dark Nation to stay and guard the kids, he went upstairs with Denzel and the little boy escorted him into Cloud’s office. Cloud’s storage box was initially locked, but Rufus simply brought his smartwatch closer and pressed some buttons, and it only took three seconds for the box to open, and he began to go through the box contains immediately.

“Wow…”

“Like my fancy trick?” Rufus asked.

“You’re like a spy in movies,” Denzel said.

Rufus chuckled. “This watch wouldn’t be possible without the help of your father, you know.”

Denzel blanked. “Huh?”

“When my R&D staffs and I reviewed old Shinra products prototypes that my father rejected, I saw this smartwatch idea and decided to get it developed. Your father’s name was Abel, right? He was the one who designed this watch.”

Rufus picked up a sword, a rather thin one; Denzel remembered that Yuffie brought it from Wutai one day, but Cloud never used it.

“I hope I still remember how to use this, it’s been a while.” Rufus muttered. He took some materia and potions as well, and closed the box again.

And then, the two quickly headed downstairs. The kids were panicking, while Dark Nation wouldn’t stop growling towards the door. He told the kids to lock the door and hide as soon as they run out, and should the bar became compromized, he told them to run as fast as they could - don’t wait for anyone, not even Cloud.

Rufus opened the door and told Dark Nation to run out and immediately cast a barrier; the thugs immediately rained the military dog with bullets and while they were distracted by him, Rufus casted Thundaga and jolted them all. And then, while they were stunned and paralyzed, he spared no extra time to give each one of them critical attacks that made them fell, with Dark Nation backing up each of his attacks and make sure his master is protected.

After making sure that the back area is clear, he moved towards the front where the main battle was, and saw that Sui was held up by her neck, and she was struggling to escape. Everyone else were busy with their own battles, being locked into positions that they couldn’t escape from.

“Is this really what the Little Water Dragon could do? I thought I heard that she became an invincible monster after Shinra awakened her powers!”

Rufus took one of the guns that he stole earlier from one of the thugs that he defeated, and without hesitation, shot the man who held his daughter up high right on his head.

The man fell on the ground along with Sui, and once she reached the ground, she quickly crawled away from the man and kicked his body away.

“Sui! Over here!”

Sui noticed her daddy and her dog, and ran up to her father immediately. It was right before he reached her that Dark Nation looked up and barked loudly. Rufus turned towards where the dog was barking, and he saw a man holding an RPG launcher.

“Dark Nation! Cast Wall!”

The rocket launched off, and the dog jumped high up as he casted a Wall spell while Rufus jumped towards Sui and grabbed her. The rocket got reflected by the wall and blasted mid-air, right above the roofs of the surrounding building, creating an aftershock for everyone. Rufus shut his eyes as he held his daughter in his arms; the moment reminded him that time when he was blasted off his own office by the Diamond Weapon. He didn’t know whether to feel better or worse - because he wasn’t alone like back then, but he wished that he didn’t bring anyone into this kind of situation.

Rufus regained consciousness when he heard the sound of dog barking and someone calling him over and over. When he opened his eyes, he was met with a pair of tearful eyes that resembled him so bad, he thought that he was faced with a mirror that reflected his childhood face at first.

But no - it’s his daughter, begging him to wake up.

As he regained consciousness, he noticed that he was lying in the middle of the road. Next to Sui was Dark Nation, barking loudly to wake him up. Near them was Barret, Cloud, and Tifa - who was casting Curaga on him. He also noticed the several bottles of potions lying around.

He sat up, and then he noticed that the crowd was bigger than he thought - there was Denzel, Marlene, and the rest of the kids who was at the bar, and their parents as well. The Turks were there too. Sui immediately embraced him and buried her face on his chest as she sobbed, and Rufus stroked her back to help her calm down, and Dark Nation snuggled to his face, licking him gently.

“What just happened?” he asked, turning to the Turks.

“Apologies for not giving you backup on time, sir.” Tseng said, “We were all swiftly taken out on our standby positions, and we fell unconscious for a while until the rocket launcher explosion earlier. We came here as soon as possible, but they were already gone.”

“Any idea who those people was?”

“I think they’re part of a Wutaian mafia group, sir. We’ve asked our agents in Wutai to begin investigating immediately based on the evidences they left, but it seems like they’ve been hiding around in Edge for a while.”

Rufus nodded, gesturing that he understand. Still feeling the after-effects concussion from the blast earlier, he knew that he wouldn’t be able to drive on his own for the rest of the evening, so he asked the Turks to fetch his car and take it back to Healen, and arrange a chauffeured car to pick him up. He then slowly stood up, still keeping Sui latching onto his leg, and turned towards Tifa and the ex-AVALANCHE crew. “Thank you for your help - I truly apologize about everything that just happened. I’ll send some people to fix all the damages soon.”

“Don’t worry too much about that,” Barret said, “Worry about yourself and your kid first - she doesn’t look too well.”

“I’ve given you both potions and cure spells, but get yourself checked by doctors, just to make sure.” Tifa added.

“Yeah, pretty sure she’s more shaken up than actual physical injuries,” Cloud mentioned. “Better get her home soon.”

Just as they were talking, a man came forward and punched Rufus’ face - Sui was thrown off her latch and fell to the ground. They immediately became alarmed again, afraid that it was another member of the gang from earlier. However, it wasn’t.

Tifa gasped. “Lucas?”

Rufus remembered the guy - he was the convenience store owner who greeted Sui earlier and promised to give her some ice lollies. Now that he had a closer look, he realized that the guy’s legs are made out of metal prosthetics.

“You… WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?”

Barret stepped forward. “Hey man, this ain’t the time for-“

“THE HELL IT WASN’T!” Lucas yelled, “I’ve been waiting for years to punch this man in the face with my own fists - the man who ruined my life, and everyone’s lives around here ever since the Sector 7 plate drop! Rufus Shinra, you’re going to pay for what you’ve done today!”

Everyone gasped.

_“Rufus Shinra? THAT Rufus Shinra?”_

_“That man is Sui-chan’s father? This can’t be!”_

_“I knew it when I felt like I’ve seen him somewhere before!”_

_“I can’t believe a good girl like Sui had a father like him…what a pity.”_

Those murmuring whispers were heard loud and clear. Rufus had nothing to hide anymore - long gone was his cap and sunglasses from the blast earlier, and he had minor bruises, scratches, and dust all over his body; his current presence was far from what the public used to see, but there’s no mistaken that it’s the person known as the ruthless President of Shinra Company.

Dark Nation was ready to attack, but he signalled his dog to go stand by near his daughter.

“Tell me, what do you need from me?”

“I want my revenge!” Lucas yelled. “I want you to pay for everything that Shinra has done to me and my family…to all of us here!”

“I ask you once more; what do you need?”

“Were you deaf? I already told you everything just now!”

“It’s what you ‘want’ - not what you ‘need’. You haven’t answered my question yet.”

Lucas bit his lip and glared even more. “The hell’s the difference? It’ doesn’t change the fact that what you and your company have done in the past have changed our lives so drastically to the point that we have to live so miserably like this!”

“Would beating me to death fix everything?”

Lucas silenced, and his clenching fists trembled. Everybody knew the correct answer to Rufus’ question, but no one dared to answer.

All of a sudden, Sui stood from the ground and grasped something out of thin air. When she opened her fists, she showed a piece of rock about the size of an egg - probably from somewhere down the road. She then walked towards the crowd, where people dispersed away from her, and gave the rock to one of the boys she played with earlier.

“Here, I gave this back to you. You were throwing this to my father earlier.”

The boy trembled, desperately trying to deny the fact that he’s the one who throw the rock. Rufus knew that her eyes wouldn’t miss anything, and the boy wasn’t a good liar either. The boy ended up soiling his pants as his cheeks were flooded with tears.

“That’s enough, Sui. Come back here.”

Sui placed the rock on the ground, and she returned to her father’s side as ordered. This time, Rufus held her hand immediately and pulled her close.

“I thought so,” Lucas said. “You…not only that you have ruined so many people’s lives, but you’re also raising a monster! Everyone, can’t you all see? The kid has been fighting alongside ex-AVALACHE members without a hassle! A-and that rock! Not even an ex-SOLDIER like Cloud was able to see that rock coming, or even catch it with bare hands! Rufus Shinra’s daughter, even his dog, both of them aren’t normal! They’re-“

This time, Cloud was the one who shut the man’s mouth. He hit the man’s head hard enough that he fell and passed out on the ground. 

“That’s enough for now.” he hissed.

Everyone was baffled - including Rufus. Cloud Strife was the last man on earth to be hoped for to stood for anyone related to Shinra.

Just in time, Tseng arrived and told him that the limousine has arrived and ready to take them away from the district, but they have to walk since the car can't go into the district due to all the damages on the road.

“Then Sui and I will take our leave now,” Rufus said. “I owe you one, Strife.”

“We’ll talk about that later - just go.” Cloud replied.

As they were about to walk away, Sui’s eyes widened, as if she just realized something. She hastily latched her hand off from her father’s, dug into her small bag, and fished out the present that she have prepared earlier for Tifa. She then walked towards the bartender, and handed out the present box to her.

“Thank you for taking care of me when I was sick, Tifa. This is a gift from me.”

Tifa’s eyes immediately scanned the surroundings around her - as she thought, everyone’s eyes were immediately darted towards her. The situation was very awkward indeed, and she should reject the gift immediately for the sake of herself if she didn’t want people in the neighborhood to judge her wrongly. Still, she really didn’t want to disappoint the little girl in front of her. Smiling, she then kneeled down in front of her to talk to her face-to-face.

“Thank you very much, Sui. But you shouldn’t have-“

“This isn’t from my daddy, Tifa. This is from me. Please accept it because this is the sign of my gratitude to you.”

Tifa was lost at words. The little girl spoke loud and clear, as if making sure that everybody else heard her statement. She was giving that polite smile like when they first meet, but her eyes looked as if she was trying to hold back a tear.

So then, Tifa took the present and embraced the little girl.

“Thank you so much, Sui. I’ll treasure it.”

The girl grasped harder on Tifa, reluctant to let go. Tifa stroked the little girl’s back, knowing how that girl must be very scared and confused with all this situation going on. She too, didn’t want to let go of Sui, but she must.

After all, she wasn’t her daughter after all.

She didn’t know why she held such affections towards a girl that wasn’t her daughter - a Shinra’s heiress, to be exact. Is it possible that she might love Sui more than Marlene, even though they haven’t really known each other for that long? She didn’t know.

“Miss Sui, it’s time for us to go.” Tseng reminded.

Sui squeezed her arms around Tifa once more, before she whispered to the bartender’s ear and kissed her cheek.

She then marched back towards her father, where he and Dark Nation was waiting with the rest of the Turks. And then, she held onto her father’s hand as they stepped away from the district, sometimes turning back to see her friends. Marlene wanted to run to her, but Barret held his daughter back.

“We’ll see them again soon, Marlene. I promise.” he whispered.

—-

Once they were in the car, Rufus told them to drove back to the New Loveless Avenue district again. He then turned towards his daughter and held both of her shoulders.

“Sui, from today on - you don’t need to hide the fact that you are a Shinra anymore - except when you are in a vulnerable position where you are separated from me or the Turks. Also, it’s best that you don’t go to the district for now - Tifa, Denzel, Marlene and the others will be the ones who come and visit us from time to time.”

Sui nodded. “Yes, I understand.”

 _As always,_ Rufus thought.

“May I request for one thing?” she asked.

“What is it?”

“I don’t want Tseng and everyone else to start calling me ‘Miss Shinra’. My name is Sui and has been Sui, long before that I know that I am your daughter. I want people to know me by my own name rather than our family’s name. Is that okay?”

Rufus was stunned - as also the rest of the Turks in the car who heard her. Sui resembled the _shachou_ through and through, way beyond their expectation.

“Of course it’s okay, my dear.”

The rest of the trip remained silent with Sui wrapping herself around her father like a baby koala.

“Anyway, we still have one more thing to do.” Rufus mentioned, breaking the silence.

“…Aunt Eleanor’s party?” Sui moaned.

“Yes.”

“Can’t we just go home?”

Rufus shook his head. “I already told you, my dear. This gala dinner is important.”

“…But I don’t feel like it,”

“I know, I don’t feel like it too. But we have to go.”

“Why?”

“Because as a Shinra, we are born unlike other people; sometimes…those small things we do that seemed unimportant to us may make a big impact on others.”

“Really?”

Rufus nodded. “One day you’ll understand, my dear; and I’ll teach you everything about it, bit by bit. However… right now I need you to be brave and give your brightest smile in front everyone in the party. Can you do that for me, please?”

Sui looked hesitant, and observed her clothes and then to her father. “Daddy, we are covered in dirt and bruises. I don’t think it’s appropriate for us to go to a party like this.”

“Well, we’re heading to a stylist first before we attend the party.”

“What place is that?”

Rufus smiled, “A place where they turn little girls like you into a pretty princess.”

The place they headed to was an upscale boutique attached to a salon; when Rufus arrived, they have already prepared the VVIP section and they entered through a hidden pathway that were separated from the public entrances. The boutique was packed, and the employee mentioned that most of their clients are for Lady Corvinus’ gala dinner.

It was Andrea Rhodea himself, the owner of the boutique, who handled Rufus and Sui for the day. With a snap from his finger, the whole team went busy immediately - they picked the latest modern-style suit and gown design for the father and daughter, both were white with black accents. The two of them had special aromatherapy baths, hair and nail treatments, and Sui had her nails painted with a color that resembled a pearl, and they have little sparkles that would shine under the lights. And then, because it is a special day, Rufus allowed Sui to try on a lipstick and blush-ons. They were very light colors, but they made Sui felt like she’s a grown-up already. For the final retouch, they put a diamond-studded butterfly-shaped hairclip on the left side of her hair.

And after they were done, Rufus was more than pleased.

“You look magnificent, my dear.”

Sui smiled. It was the first time she heard her father use such grand word. When she looked at her own reflection - she finally realized why; she truly looked like a princess out of a fairytale.

“Daddy, is Mr. Rhodea a fairy godmother?”

Both Rufus and Andrea laughed.

“Perhaps I may be, darling.” Andrea said, “I’ve transformed many people - from little girls to SOLDIERs into magnificent-looking ladies. Now I hope you enjoy the night at Lady Corvinus’ party and shine bright like a star!”

Sui politely thanked Andrea and his whole crew for their service, and then off they went to the gala dinner’s location.

—-

Lady Corvinus’ fundraising gala dinner was surely a major occasion for the upper class society; billionaires from other cities of Gaia and the old upper plate residents of Midgar who were invited came flocking to the New Loveless Avenue district to join the party. Other than they wanted to mingle back with their old friends and colleagues after the meteorfall incident,they were also highly curious on who is this “Sui Shinra” listed on the invite; right under Rufus’ name. Some wanted to assume that she might be someone that he recently married in secret, but the title “Miss” in front of her name made that speculation seemed too far-fetched; and if she’s just a girlfriend, why did she bear the Shinra name? Would she might be the previous President’s illegitimate, hidden daughter? Or perhaps Rufus Shinra’s daughter?

Meanwhile, people at the shopping district have their eyes glued to their television as they watched the whole party unroll; the event was televised, as the party organizers claimed that they’re having ‘major news’ about the current president of the Shinra company. The people at the district weren’t usually interested with Shinra-related news or what the crazy rich ex-topside people do, but after what happened today, they couldn’t turn their eyes away - especially from the little girl who have managed to charm everyone at the district within a short time.

People still couldn’t believe that she is the Shinra heiress.

Seventh Heaven was packed that night, but all of the patrons were the locals who were bringing their kids and families. The bar was pretty much the only place that weren’t damaged by the earlier incident, and after so much cleaning around the area, they had no more energy left to cook their own dinners. And thus, they came down to the bar for Tifa’s cooking and some alcohol after a hard day of work.

“How long have you known that the kid was Shinra’s bastard?” one of the patrons asked from over the counter.

“Since the first day she came to this district,” Tifa answered, serving him a bottle of beer. “Denzel and Marlene stumbled upon her on their way home from school. The Turks and her father found her later during the evening, and we were very reluctant to let the kids play with her at first. However, they enjoy each other's company so much that we agreed not to bring up anything about our past incidents around the kids… even though Marlene and Denzel knew that we were ex-enemies. The little girl didn't know much, she only came to Midgar to live with her father recently." 

“Was it really hard to look past an ex-nemesis like that?” another patron asked, “I mean, my blood still boiled every time I heard Shinra’s name being mentioned…”

Tifa sighed. “All that I wished for as an AVALANCHE member was for peace. Keeping grudges won’t help you with that.”

The patron looked at her bitterly, but then he decided to shut up and drink his beer instead - he's not an AVALANCHE member after all; she was. 

“Look, look! Sui and her daddy is on TV!” a little girl cried.

Everyone quickly turned their attention towards theflatscreen television placed above the bar counter, and soon the whole bar was filled with gasps. Sui was always a charming and stylish little girl; despite keeping her outfits simple when she came by the afternoons, people do notice that she's always dressed much nicer than what most of the kids wear in the area. Still, she looked very different on television with a formal dress and a party updo. And despite most of the adults there still couldn’t imagine ever forgiving Shinra Company, Rufus looked very charming that night to the point that they forgot that they’re supposed to feel contempt for him; was it because Sui stood next to him?

“…So, Sui-chan is really a princess, huh?” one of the little boys said. “She and her daddy looked very different than what we saw this afternoon.”

The whole bar silenced. Barret tried not to imagine how much it costs for Rufus to transform the two from that dishevelled after-battle look into regal-looking people in such a short time; both father and daughter now also looked very calm, donning smiles that can charm a nation.

“I don’t know if I agree with Lucas about that girl being a monster, but I know for sure that the kid’s no ordinary human being.” one of the patrons said, “The kids here are still shaking about what happened earlier, and now she’s already behaving so well like nothing happened.”

“Kid must be spanked and threatened to death by her daddy if she doesn’t smile in front of daddy's important friends,” another patron remarked. “That’s what he does best, right? Control with fear-“

“Stop making assumptions like that!” Tifa barked, banging the bar table. “Rufus Shinra might be all sorts of evil, but he clearly does not treat his daughter like that!”

The patron scoffed, “Oh yeah, what do you know about that Shinra brat, huh? If that little girl has been treated so well by her daddy, why did she came running to this place every evening just to play?”

Tifa could feel her blood boil. She was ready to bark back at the patron. However, Cloud grabbed the man by the collar and dragged him down towards the exit.

“-Oy! What’re you doing?”

“You’re obviously too drunk to stay in here - go home.”

“But that’s what a bar is for! Get drunk until you’re wasted!”

“Not today, old man. We’re currently having kids in the house.”

After Cloud booted the man away, Tifa announced that she’s giving each kids a glass of Shirley Temple for free. The kids immediately cheered up, and they lined up by the bar counter to wait while the bartender began to pour the drinks.

Sui liked the Shirley Temple that Tifa made; the bartender often brewed the mocktail for the little girl during her visits - especially on particularly hot days. As Tifa moved around the bar, the blue rose pendant dangled around her neck.

“Is that the gift from Sui?” Marlene asked, helping Tifa fetch the extra bottles of beer requested by the bar visitors.

Tifa nodded. “Beautiful, right?” she said, fiddling her fingers around the blue rose. 

"Yeah," Marlene agreed. The two fell in silence, looking at the pendant as both of their minds tried to remember Sui's expression before she left. 

“What did Sui said to you before she leave?”

Tifa turned to Marlene, and beckoned her to come closer to her. Tifa then fished out her phone from her apron and showed her text messages with Yuffie; she mentioned how she received a spoken message from a little girl earlier, and while it was short, Tifa couldn’t understand what it means because it was spoken in Wutaian. Tifa then sent a voice message to Yuffie, pronouncing the words as best as she could, in which Yuffie replied:

_“If you pronounced it right, then she’s saying ‘Thank you so much, mama. I love you.'”_

Marlene gaped. “What-“ - but Tifa quickly placed her finger in front of Marlene’s lips.

“Don’t say anything yet to Cloud or Denzel,” she begged. “I’m not even sure myself what’s going on here.”

“But you’re wearing the necklace,” Marlene said. “...Tifa, what do you intend to do with Sui and her daddy?”

“There’s nothing going on between me and her father, Marlene. I can assure you that.” Tifa affirmed, “But…I am certain that I feel some sort of connection to her. I just don't know why.”

Tifa then turned her gaze towards the television, where the screen now showed Sui in close-up as she accompanied her father on stage, giving his speech. The patrons of Seven Heaven once again commented how beautiful and charming she looked, but Tifa stared at her quietly with a sad, longing face.

“She looked sad,” the bartender mentioned. “She wanted to go home, and she wanted to see us again.”

And then, the little girl finally took the stand after her father’s speech was done. Looking straight to the camera, she took the microphone and spoke loud and clear;

“People of Gaia, allow me to introduce myself; I am Sui Shinra, daughter of President Rufus Shinra.”

And thus, long gone the days where Sui Shinra was hidden from the world.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> LONG CHAPTER UPDATE! Sorry for the wait T_T I'm busy with work and got sick several times. I hope you enjoy it! Next up: we're finally going to learn more about Sui before she arrived in Midgar!


End file.
